The devilish doll
ANNABELLE IS BACK FOR ANOTHER ROUND OF SCARES Discover how evil was born.
Since 2013, The Conjuring universe has been serving up jump scares to the delight of horror aficionados – but it’s one of the universes creepiest artifacts, the Annabelle doll, that seems to be able to fill us with so much dread and delight that we keep coming back for more.
Annabelle: Creation is meant to be a prequel to 2014’s Annabelle – but instead of merely becoming an add-on to the ever-expanding story of this terrifying doll, Creation is a superior follow-up that even managed to snag the top spot in the Amercian Box Office last week. Sitting in a very empty press screening (Annabelle seems to be garlic for blood-hungry movie reviewers) I have a feeling reviews of the film will be scarce.
It’s a pity really, because Creation is everything a trip to the movies ought to be: so mesmerising you end up deeply entrenched in what’s happening on screen – you completely forget where you are until the lights come on again. It’s a jolty, albeit sometimes silly, horror flick worth your time.
Starring:
Stephanie Sigman, Talitha Bateman and Lulu Wilson David Sandberg 13VH
Director: Classification:
Creation gives us insight into both the physical Annabelle, as well as the dark force tied to the doll.
The film opens in the mid-’40s where doll maker Samuel Mullins creates a new doll in the likeness of his daughter. But shortly after the doll’s creation Samuel and his wife, Esther, are met with tragedy when daughter Annabelle is run over by a car.
Fast forward 12 years and the Mullins decide to open their home as an orphanage. The act of kindness is to help them deal with their own loss, and also to have the pitter-patter of children around again.
But it’s when one of the orphans, Janice, start experiencing unexplainable things after discovering the Annabelle doll locked in a cupboard that things truly get spooky.
The orphans and their teacher, Sister Charlotte, end up learning that after the real Annabelle died, the Mullins started to experience her presence. They vowed their love to anything that could bring their beloved daughter back.
In the end, it’s revealed that a demonic presence was able to fool them into allowing it into the doll. They managed to trap the spirit in a closet – and the frightening dark force is unleashed again.
The fun thing about Annabelle is that the doll never does anything. You never see it move. We attach our own fears onto the inanimate object proving that this is an effective horror film.
It’s terrifying, but not to the point where it forces you to close your eyes. If you like horror, you’ll be satisfied. If you’re not the biggest fan of the genre, you’ll still be able to sit through this one.