The Conjuring 2 (2016)

👻 The beginning of the Nun-iverse nobody asked for 👻


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🎥 Let’s start by showing y’all the trailers shall we?

The Real Case vs. The Movie

The Conjuring 2 is based on the Enfield Poltergeist case from 1977 in England. In reality, two sisters in the Hodgson family claimed to experience strange occurrences — furniture moving, voices, knocking sounds — and the case attracted heavy media attention. Paranormal investigators (including the Warrens, though their role was much smaller in reality than the film suggests) looked into it, but to this day, skeptics argue much of it was hoaxed by the children.

The movie, of course, dials everything up to eleven. Instead of a possibly fabricated case of poltergeist activity, we get nun demons, prophetic visions, and Ed Warren dangling out a window in a third-act showdown. The real case was unsettling because of how subtle and ambiguous it was — the film makes it a full-on supernatural war zone.

So, while the Enfield case was creepy because you could never quite tell if it was genuine or just kids pulling tricks, The Conjuring 2 tosses that ambiguity aside in favor of spectacle. It’s not about “did it happen?” anymore, it’s about “how many demons can we cram into this franchise?”

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📖 Non-Spoiler Plot Overview

This one kicks off with the Warrens poking around the infamous Amityville house. Lorraine goes into one of her psychic trances and sees two things: a demonic nun and Ed’s death. Both of those visions haunt her the entire film and set up the franchise’s obsession with spinoffs.

From there, the main story jumps to Enfield, London — the case this movie is based on. In real life, the Enfield haunting was one of the most heavily publicized ghost stories of the 1970s. Furniture moved, kids levitated, voices spoke through Janet Hodgson… but skeptics also pointed out a lot of hoaxes. The film, of course, cranks the scare factor and turns it into a full-blown possession story.

In the movie, Peggy Hodgson (single mom with four kids) is just trying to get by when the youngest daughter Janet starts being tormented by the ghost of an old man named Bill Wilkins. He snarls through her mouth, makes her sleepwalk, and generally terrorizes the whole family. The Warrens are called in, but while they’re investigating, Lorraine keeps getting stalked by her vision of the Nun demon — later revealed as Valak.

Here’s the thing: the movie really tones down the messiness of the actual case. In reality, Janet and her sister were caught faking stuff, there was doubt from investigators, and the Warrens weren’t even that heavily involved. The film streamlines all of it into a clean “evil demon + heroic Warrens” narrative. Which works for horror? Sure. But for accuracy? Yeah, not so much.

And of course, while we’re here for the Hodgson haunting, Warner Bros. keeps pulling our focus back to that creepy Nun, because god forbid we don’t launch The Nun spinoff out of this.

And y’all already know I gotta bring up the infamous Nun hallway scene. Lorraine’s daughter spots something at the end of the hallway, and sure enough, Lorraine sees it too: that pale-faced demon nun standing there. The figure glides into the study, door slams shut, windows lock, and then the shadow of the nun crawls across the wall… straight into the painting of the nun that Ed just finished.

And then — BOOM. Hands burst out of the frame, dragging the painting forward, the nun comes screeching out of the darkness right at Lorraine. One of the best jump scares James Wan ever cooked up.

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👥 Character Rundown

Ed Warren (Patrick Wilson) – Good-hearted, goes all in on protecting Janet, even if it means dangling out a window like it’s Mission: Impossible.

Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) – Haunted (literally) by her visions of the Nun and Ed’s death. She’s the emotional core and the one who figures out the demon’s name.

Janet Hodgson (Madison Wolfe) – The standout kid actor here. She sells the possession scenes hard, even when she’s growling out Bill Wilkins’ voice.

Peggy Hodgson (Frances O’Connor) – The exhausted single mom. Her “I just want to keep my kids safe” energy grounds the film.

The Demon Nun / Valak (Bonnie Aarons) – Grey-skinned, black-eyed, habit-wearing demon. Creepy, yes, but also the point where this franchise stopped being lean horror and started being a spinoff factory.



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⏱️ Pacing / Episode Flow

The first half? Strong atmosphere, classic ghost story tension. Middle section? Great scares, especially that Nun hallway scene. The third act? Bloated and a little silly. Instead of letting the haunting breathe, it leans into spectacle and spinoff bait.


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✅ Pros

The Enfield case is a solid foundation for a haunting story.

The Nun hallway sequence is nightmare fuel.

Lorraine and Janet carry the emotional weight, keeping the film grounded.

Production design nails that 1970s UK grit.



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❌ Cons

The real case was way messier (and more human) than this glossy Hollywood version.

Valak feels less like a terrifying demon and more like a Warner Bros. backdoor pilot.

The “name banishing” ending is painfully weak.

Loses the subtle terror of the first Conjuring and starts bloating into spectacle.

Too long, and you feel it.



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💭 Final Thoughts

The Conjuring 2 works as a haunted house movie, but it’s also where the cracks start showing. It leans too hard into franchising instead of just being scary, tones down the real case into a neat little possession story, and introduces a demon nun that feels more like a marketing move than a natural villain.

Still scary in parts, but if the first film was lightning in a bottle, this one is more like “lightning in a Warner Bros. boardroom.”


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🎯 Rating

8/10. Creepy, effective, but the start of the downfall.


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⚠️ Spoiler Warning

Alright y’all, let’s talk the big reveals.


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🩸 Spoilers

Bill Wilkins twist: The old man ghost terrorizing Janet isn’t really the villain. He’s trapped, being used by Valak. He begs for help: “It won’t let me go!”

The tapes reveal: Ed plays back two recordings at the same time, and only then do they realize Bill was crying for help.

Valak’s manipulation: Lorraine realizes the Nun has been orchestrating everything, including planting visions of Ed’s death to weaken her resolve.

The climax: Janet almost jumps out a window during a storm, Ed rushes in and nearly falls to his death. Lorraine confronts Valak, declares its name, and banishes it with a single line: “The power of God compels you, Valak!” (insert biggest eyeroll ever).

Resolution: Family saved, Warrens head home with yet another cursed toy (the Crooked Man — spin-off bait that never materialized), and Lorraine breathes a sigh of relief that Ed survived.