The hype for the second “Annabelle” fell short of expectations after following its extremely well-done horror films in “The Conjuring” series. The Annabelle doll is first featured in The Conjuring as a creepy, possessed doll, but it is not the focus of the movie. The first spinoff movie “Annabelle” was released a year later, which focused on the doll as the source of terrors. The prequel “Annabelle: Creation” gave the origins of the sinister doll.

This movie had a decent plot considering its connection to the series, however, it lacked in the horror element. The movie moved slowly and became boring, with lots of build up to create intense jump scares, but often lacked a climax. Some of the jump scares that actually did happen ended up being really predictable and even somewhat cliche. The demon depicted seemed like a more cartoony version of the latex man from season one of “American Horror Story,” which wasn’t as frightening as you might think. Since the Annabelle movies are connected to The Conjuring series, I would expect them to take place in the same “world” and follow the same rules. However, there were things in “Annabelle: Creation” that didn’t comply which made it lose its believability aspect, like someone’s deathly screams only feet away from others but their reaction is delayed, if they react at all. In previous movies within this series, screams were definitely reacted to. The lack of believability resulted in a more comedic type of horror, rather than the thriller-horror I was expecting. I probably had my expectations much too high, considering the first Annabelle was nowhere near as good as either of the Conjurings, with an abundance of faults. At least there is a consistency with the demonic doll wanting a soul, specifically someone weak and vulnerable.

There are good and bad things to say about both The Conjuring series and the Annabelle spinoff series. The Conjuring movies are a bit more fast pace, with much more intense jump-scare scenes. The Conjuring main characters Ed and Lorraine Warren are based on real people and their case files. Annabelle was also based on a true case of theirs, but the doll was a rag doll rather than the vintage porcelain doll that is used. Despite “Annabelle: Creation” being much less scary and less believable in its realm, it wasn’t a horrible film. If you’re into the storyline and plot of The Conjuring movies, then it wouldn’t be a waste to watch it. If you get bored while watching, you can look out for all subtle Easter eggs that appear throughout all the movies that may be foreshadowing for a future film.

Sophia Robledo-Borowy can be reached at [email protected] or @Sophhhia3 on Twitter.