7/10
The Conjuring by way of Goosebumps (Adjust your expectations accordingly)
26 June 2019
What is it with horror movies and lax on-set security recently? In Annabelle Comes Home there are frequently figures moving around in the background during scary scenes and it's super distracting.

Jokes aside, the best way to describe the new Annabelle film would be The Conjuring by way of Goosebumps. If that sounds appealing to you, then you'll certainly get a kick out of the numerous monsters and demons that appear onscreen throughout the film. But if your looking for something bone-chillingly terrifying, well then.... you'll have to adjust your expectations a bit.

The set-up to the story is largely a gimmick, as two young girls agree to stay at the Warren's house overnight and babysit their ten-year-old daughter. With only their curiosity and numerous trapped malevolent spirits and demons to keep them company, what could possibly go wrong? However, series writer Gary Dauberman, who also makes his directorial debut here, understands what makes these films fun and appealing. So, when one of the girls wanders into the basement and unleashes Annabelle, so too does she unleash the many other demons trapped below.

What ensues feels like a live action broadcast of a puppet master pulling the strings on his favourite creations. Throughout the night, the girls are chased and tormented by the monsters and entities from the Warren's previous cases, and it's the sort of outlandish premise that benefits from the kitchen sink approach Dauberman provides.

Moreover, in a time where horror films seem content on recycling the same scare tactics in hopes that they will still work the hundredth time around, the third Annabelle film feels like a welcome respite. It seeks to entertain, more than it does to scare, and it lends the film a breezy, eminently watchable quality. There are still plenty of jump scares and hit or miss moments, but the air of fun that hangs over the film luckily patches over most of the rough bits. If the recent Child's Play didn't satisfy your hunger for killer dolls, then Annabelle Comes Home may just do the trick.
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