Reviewed by Rama Gaind.
Director: Corin Hardy, Roadshow Entertainment.
Cast: Taissa Farmiga, Demian Bichir, Jonas Bloquet, Bonnie Aarons.
A mystery thriller with a difference, The Nun could see you do a double-take.
When a young nun at a cloistered abbey in Romania takes her own life, the Vatican sends devil hunter Father Burke (Bichir) and Sister Irene (Farmiga), a novitiate on the verge of taking her final vows, to investigate. What are the forces plaguing this holy site.
They connect on this ‘mission’ to reveal the order’s unholy secret. It’s not surprising then to realise that they not only risk their own lives, but also their faith and their souls. They confront a malevolent force in the form of the same demonic nun that first terrorised audiences in The Conjuring 2. That’s when the abbey becomes a horrific battleground between the living and the damned.
Glimpses of the nun in the past have been rather unnerving, but actually have a full film devoted to her can be confronting. Her very existence is, at first, disconcerting, but before long its recurrence gives way to being on the verge of anticipated during the film. Aarons is the demon nun who wanders the dim hallways, with an indefinable yet frightening power.
However, the mood to captivate does not dissipate. Director Hardy does well with the film based on a screenplay by writer Gary Fauberman (It, Annabelle).
The fact that young Irene has ‘visions’ is the reason she gets picked for this dangerous assignment. Her determined presence and calm dependability give validity to what may not be a full-on thrill ride like the Conjuring movie, but Blu-ray viewing does leave you feeling uneasy.
