By CHRIS PUNTO & NATALIE SACKET
Columnists
If you guys have been reading our articles for a while now, you’ll remember that we reviewed a horror film last semester that we thought was pretty scary. That movie came nothing close to our choice for this week:
“Annabelle” (2014)
Chris’ Review
4 murder dolls out of 5
There are two kinds of people in this world: ones that hate horror movies and ones that love them. I personally love them. I love them. Natalie hates them. The only reason that we watched “Annabelle” was because I’m clearly more talented, which means that I get to pick the movies to review. My only regret is that I couldn’t watch the movie with Natalie so that I can see her swear like a sailor at every scary part.
I can only imagine the flurry of colorful words that came out of Natalie’s mouth, because this movie was horrifying. If you’ve seen “The Conjuring,” which I’m sure you have if you are watching this movie, you know the kind of bone-chilling fear I’m talking about. The kind of fear that makes you sleep with a light on only to wake up every few minutes to scan the room for demons.
If you want a truly terrifying experience, do some research into the Manson family before watching this movie. I did, and it left my inner child crawling into a corner for safety. I won’t give any spoilers because I want everyone here to go through the same edge-of-your-seat experience I went through.
My only issue with this movie was that it did not have great acting, which has always been a problem in horror films, but I digress. This film gave me the same feeling that I got in “The Conjuring.” I didn’t always feel like something was going to jump out at me, but I was always afraid.
What is the bottom line you ask? Well I’ll tell you. This movie is a great horror flick. It’s well directed, well scripted, and well, just scary. I might have scared a few of you out of going, but I feel like all of you need to know the truth. You have been warned.
Natalie’s Review
3.5 demon dolls out of 5
What was the scariest part about “Annabelle?”
A. Creepy Dolls
B. Demon Possession
C. Funky Sixties Clothing Choices
D. Cults
The correct answer? Choice E. The Pitiful Manner in Which Natalie Watches Horror Movies.
No, I am not the biggest horror movie fan. Yes, they terrify me and I act like a 5-year-old throughout the entirety of the film. However, I faced my fears of creepy dolls and the horror genre to give you all my opinion about “Annabelle.”
So there I sat, curled up in the fetal position, fingers plugging ears and palms covering eyes, whimpering every time something moved onscreen … and actually enjoyed the film.
Perhaps I’m a wimp, but I found this movie truly horrifying. However, the audience assured me that I was not the only one, as I was surrounded by a number of cursing, gasping and whimpering audience members.
There were some really intriguing and beautiful themes in this film, including the exploration of sacrifice and the love of a mother.
Though I can probably count on my fingers the number of horror movies I’ve seen, I did see a lot of copied scare tactics in “Annabelle.” For instance, random objects moving, TVs messing up, creepy person standing in the doorway, terrifying child staring at you with dead, soulless eyes. While all of these aspects have been overused in horror movies, they are effective in scaring your pants off. I did hear several complaints about the reuse of ideas, but hey, if it works, it works.
Annabelle Wallis (appropriately chosen name for the lead actress) did a phenomenal job. I’ve avoided talking about the true star of the film, however, as the very thought of her strikes a pang of fear into my heart. Annabelle, the doll, is horrifying. The doll was creepy before being possessed, she was even creepier after being possessed and I still find that stupid doll creepy every time I think of it.
This film did cross a line besides scaring my pants off. This was perhaps the only and biggest flaw in this film for me. A baby’s life is put at risk numerous times and at one point it is believed that she has been severely hurt. Perhaps this is just a Natalie thing, but portrayed violence against a child is a huge “no no” in my book.
Bottom Line: If you aren’t afraid of wetting your pants a little in public, go watch “Annabelle” in theatres.