For anyone who is not familiar with the Annabelle story, she is based on a real-life doll which is one of the scariest objects in the world. This doll exists and has had documented occurrences where it levitated on its own and attacked people; it has even been reported that she can affect things around her like cutting the engine off in a car that is taking her somewhere she doesn’t want to go. The Annabelle in Annabelle: Creation is based on the real doll and reignited interest in her story after she appeared in the popular The Conjuring franchise. Annabelle was given her own spinoff movie, and now she’s getting a prequel. So, what can we expect from this prequel?
The trailer for the movie makes it apparent that this movie is departing from its source material. They are giving the doll a new, and dare I say creepier, backstory. It is set in what looks like the depression era where a man takes in a group of girls after losing his own daughter in a tragic accident. We see one door that is locked and meant to stay that way, presumably because the evil doll is behind the door. If the trailer is any indication, the doll was born from the man and his wife allowing a spirit which they thought was their daughter into the doll.
It is fairly obvious that we will see the doll/spirit terrorize the residents of the house, but I have an inkling that this new movie will do something that we haven’t seen in the Conjuring franchise. Given the number of girls who are introduced to the house, I think that we will see a body count. A few deaths will only add to the terror that this series is so talented at drumming up.
The most important scene that we need to talk about in the trailer is the scene where the little girl walks in and sees the ghost of Annabelle at the window. That scene by itself could be an entry into a horror short contest. I even slowed down the scene where she changes to try to catch some bad graphics, but they did a fantastic job with the computer animation. I think that the fact that the main character is physically disadvantaged makes it all the scarier.
I believe that, judging by the trailer, horror fans are in for one hell of a ride with this installment in the Conjuring universe. The trailer itself showcases a couple of jump scares which don’t lose their potency no matter how many times you watch them. It is a safe bet that there will be much more where those came from and we can expect a genuinely terrifying experience.
Much like its predecessor, Annabelle: Creation has a hard R-rating which is great for fans who have been cheated too many times by the PG-13 version of a movie. I think that the R allows them to play around with darker scenes which ultimately lead to a larger payoff in the scare category. I know that just by watching the trailer I am already creeped out, and thirsting to see more. Annabelle isn’t going to need my help to sell tickets as the franchise has done fine on its own so far, but I will still suggest that people get out and see this film because I am willing to bet that it will be one of the best of the year in the genre.