Say Goodbye Together with "The Conjuring: Last Rites"
Monday, September 8, 2025 at 7:39PM by Nick Taylor
After twelve years, the main branch of The Conjuring film series has seemingly closed its doors. Whether we get any more Annabelles or The Nuns or a subsequent cash-grab inspired by the success of The Conjuring: Last Rites is a different story entirely, and I’ll wait a few years before I truly believe James Wan’s claims about this really being the end. But as a send-off to cinema’s own Ed and Lorraine Warren, there’s plenty of affecting work to admire within some godawful cinematography and a villain that’s never very compelling on its own terms.
We begin The Conjuring: Last Rites in 1964, as Ed and Lorraine (Orion Smith and Madison Lawlor) begin recording statements for their first-ever case. They’re investigating the haunted goings-on at a curiosity shop, where according to the shop’s assistant, there’s been an uptick in inexplicable paranormal activity since the owner inexplicably killed himself . . . .