Step into the haunting world of The Nun II, where darkness and great evil lurk in every corner, and immense fear takes hold. In this thrilling sequel to The Nun, we are once again captivated by the petrifying story of previous characters Sister Irene, a nun with a heart of pure gold, and Maurice, a flirtatious French farmer. This time around, we meet some new characters: Sophie, a young schoolgirl, her mother, Kate, a schoolteacher, and Sister Debra, a new nun struggling with her faith. Prepare to be on the edge of your seat as we dive into the depths of true terror.
The film begins in Tarascon, France, in the year 1956. We are shown a little boy, Jacque, playing in an alleyway as he makes his way to the church to help out the priest. Jacque then runs into the evil entity, The Nun, and warns the priest, but they are not strong enough to defeat it. The Nun then burns the priest alive in front of Jacque, leaving him scarred, introducing the plot, and leaving the viewer with numerous questions and yearning for more. This introduction, as well as the beginning scenes of the film, create a lot of confusion. The cuts between scenes feel abrupt and quick and make the plot hard to understand for the viewer. But this is temporary, as each scene in the beginning sequence is explained throughout the movie.
After this event, we are introduced to all of the new main characters in the franchise. Sophie, Kate, and Sister Debra. Maurice, also known as Frenchie, is back and has begun serving at an all-girls boarding school that Kate works at and her daughter Sophie attends. We are introduced to a bullying trope, a great friendship between Maurice and Sophie, as well as a budding romance between Maurice and Sophie’s mother, Kate. We also learn of an ominous presence at the school. Strange things begin happening that have no explanation but are brushed off.
This part of the movie feels really slow. While you’re learning of new small details, no significant details are introduced at this point in the film. There are, however, multiple jumpscares. While they are predictable, they are still entertaining and will give you a good scare and laugh. The plotline is also still difficult to understand. The movie almost feels like a puzzle. This may decrease the viewers’ interest, but the plot starts to thicken in the next part of the film.
Later on in the church, Sister Irene begins to notice a horrifying chain of events. She realizes that The Nun might not have been defeated, as had been thought. The priest then informs Sister Irene and Sister Debra of the new incidents, such as the burning man, a random attack on a delivery boy, and the death of a headmaster at a boarding school. This creates a feeling of fear in Sister Irene and a tone of dread in the film, which produces an unsettling feeling for viewers. Sister Irene and Sister Debra begin their investigation, attempting to get to the bottom of things and find the source of evil. After talking with multiple sources, Sister Irene begins piecing everything together, discovering that a French farmer had been nearby during each incident. This meant that Maurice was the culprit, the man she had defeated The Nun with in the previous film. She realized he had been possessed during that time. This is the part of the movie where things start to pick up and get interesting. All of these events begin leading up to the climax moment of the film.
As the film goes on, Maurice gets increasingly worse. in addition to things at the school with Sophie. She begins to notice something is off. Sister Irene and Sister Debra are still trying to figure out the mystery of what to do and what The Nun could be after. They soon discover that The Nun is after a magical pair of eyes. That’s right, a magical pair of eyes. It is honestly just as weird as it sounds. The Nun is after the eyes of Saint Lucy, as they would restore the power it had lost when rejected by God. They also discover that the eyes had been buried in the chapel of the school where Maurice works and Sophie attends, which explains his strange behavior and weird events occurring around Sophie. This is the climax. This is when the action and true terror begins. The storyline of The Eyes is strange but also quite interesting. The biblical route that the franchise takes, specifically this movie, is hard to understand, but is also clever once you educate yourself and research it. The references made are astute and create a good strategy for the movie.
A colossal action scene occurs between all of the characters in the story. Maurice becomes fully taken over by The Nun, and Sister Irene and Sister Debra are determined to find the eyes with the help of Sophie and Kate. Throughout this, a massive goat creature appears and stabs a bully under Sister Debra’s watch. Sister Irene is taking hits left and right. Sophie has the eyes and is running away from a possessed Maurice, and a lot is happening swiftly. This is interesting because of how slow the movie starts and how long it takes to get to the point of action. But still, a lot happens very quickly. By the end, The Nun is defeated by Sister Irene with the help of Sister Debra and Sophie, and the film ends on a good note.
I would rate this movie an 8 out of 10 because it is a genuinely good movie. The cinematography is insane, the music and sound effects profoundly depict the mood and tone of what is being portrayed. The jumpscares are predictable, but still enjoyable. The lighting is dark and grim, perfectly illustrating the vibe, and the plotline is clever and entertaining. However, I would not give this film full marks because the storyline can seem confusing. The movie can also be dull at times, since you must piece everything together, and the beginning is slow-paced.
I would recommend this movie to others, especially major horror fans and fans of The Conjuring franchise, as it falls into the same universe and is the same type of movie, since it relates to religious ideas and practices. If you like jam-packed, back-to-back jumpscare action movies, I don’t recommend this movie due to its slow pace. I would not recommend it if you aren’t willing to watch a horror film with a complex plotline. Still, this movie is a great watch and quite enjoyable. I highly recommend it.
