The Conjuring: Last Rites, the long-awaited finale, came to cinemas this September having generated a lot of buzz. However, it seems to have left audiences quite underwhelmed. 

Last Rites follows the Warrens on their final paranormal investigation but hardly any real development is focused on the Smurl family, who experience being haunted. The film has two separate storylines in practice, but one is considerably underdeveloped. The majority of screen time is given to the Warrens and their family dynamic. While this is not completely out of place in the context of the series– as the relationship between Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) has been a central focus of the franchise and is an aspect celebrated by fans. Evidenced by the countless TikTok edits leading up to the release.

However, in this instalment, they try to cover too much ground, especially with their daughter, Judy (Mia Tomlinson), taking such a central role in the plot. Arguably, this ends in the audience losing focus with the amount of information they have to digest now. This also prevents us from forming any sort of attachment to the Smurl family. 

In the previous instalments of the franchise, the narrative has always begun with the family being haunted and this works well as we grow invested in the characters and the plot. I did not particularly feel invested in the Smurl’s storyline this time due to this lack of development – which, according to me, makes their storyline a little pointless, because it reveals that the writers chose to include this case only because it was the Warrens’ last case, for a note of finality, which did not have anything particularly interesting about it.

I went into the cinema without watching the trailer, the name being enough to commit myself to it. This does not mean I did not have expectations as apparent by my disappointment in the plot progression. But also because I have enjoyed the previous films. I do not wish to be too damning of Last Rites as a horror film, especially concerning the paranormal, it does have limitations as it was repetitive and overly reliant on jumpscares, and therefore became predictable. However, I do not think that is the only reason why Last Rites fails. 

It was quite interesting how Judy played such a vital role in the film prompting the audience to wonder about the actual details of the case, but one quick google search reveals that Judy’s involvement in the Smurl case is completely fictitious. This makes you genuinely question why they went in this direction when they had the potential to connect The Conjuring and The Nun.

The Nun II places heavy emphasis on clairvoyance through countless references to Saint Lucy, patron saint of the blind. This is a gift possessed by Sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga) but also Lorraine and now Judy through this new installment. The connections become less farfetched as Maurice’s case makes an appearance in the first film and was one that the Warrens were involved in. 

The last thirty minutes of the film feel rather inactive as they rush to tie all the loose ends together, having spent most of the film setting up the action, only for it to end on an underwhelming note. The ending does not feel satisfying at all, instead it feels obvious and shows a lack of effort. 

Overall, it goes without saying that this felt like an unsatisfying end to The Conjuring franchise. With the recent news of the upcoming TV show based on The Conjuring Universe, it is possible that they were potentially trying to set it up in Last Rites; it was, however, a poor execution.

Rating- 2.5/5

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