Annabelle: Creation

Director: David F. Sandberg David F. Sandberg

Overview

A group of orphaned girls are taken in by a doll maker (Anthony LaPaglia) and his wife (Miranda Otto), who are still grieving the death of their daughter. However, they are soon terrorized by a haunted doll that's lurking within the couple's house. Stephanie Sigman, Talitha Bateman, and Lulu Wilson co-star in this horror sequel, which was produced by James Wan (The Conjuring, Insidious) and directed by David F. Sandberg (Lights Out).

Product Details

Release Date:	10/24/2017
UPC:	0883929569847
Original Release:	2017
Rating:	R
Source:	New Line Home Video
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:50:00
Sales rank:	13,934

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Anthony LaPaglia	Samuel Mullins
Miranda Otto	Esther Mullins
Samara Lee	Bee
Stephanie Sigman	Sister Charlotte
Talitha Bateman	Janice
Lulu Wilson	Linda
Philippa Coulthard	Nancy
Grace Fulton	Carol
Lou Lou Safran	Tierney
Tayler Buck	Kate
Brad Greenquist	Victor Palmeri
Mark Bramhall	Father Massey
Alicia Vela-Bailey	Evil Mullins/Demon Heads
Lotta Losten	Adoption Agent
Fred Tatasciore	Demon Voice
Brian Howe	Actor
Lou Lou	Actor
Javier Botet	Actor
Joseph Bishara	Annabelle Demon
Kerry O'Malley	Actor
Benjamin Wallfisch	Composer

Technical Credits

Gary Dauberman

David F. Sandberg	Director
Gary Dauberman	Screenwriter
James Wan	Producer
Peter Safran	Producer
Dave Neustadter	Executive Producer,Producer
Walter Hamada	Executive Producer,Producer
Hans Christian Ritter	Executive Producer,Producer
Richard Brener	Executive Producer
Bill R. Dean	Sound/Sound Designer
Joe Love	Special Effects
Rich Delia	Casting
Stephanie Sigman	Casting
Robert Sharman	Sound Mixer
Samantha Ward	Makeup Special Effects
Danielle Noe	Makeup Special Effects
Mark Norby	Stunts
Mark Hawker	Special Effects Supervisor
Steven Mnuchin	Executive Producer

Editorial Reviews

Annabelle: Creation is the latest installment in James Wan's The Conjuring series, which at this point is practically the horror genre's answer to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Wait, wasn't an eponymous origin story about this possessed porcelain doll just released in 2014? Yes, but that wasn't the real real Annabelle. Set at some point in the 1950s, Creation manages to both largely sweep its 2014 predecessor out of the canon and slot itself neatly into the larger lore of Wan's series. We learn here that the nightmarish figure was originally crafted by doll maker Sam Mullins (Anthony LaPaglia) for his young daughter Bee (Samara Lee) -- and Bee, of course, is a nickname for Annabelle. Twelve years after his daughter's untimely passing, Sam and his mysteriously disabled wife (Miranda Otto) take in a nun named Sister Charlotte (Stephanie Sigman) and a group of orphan girls in the hope of finding a purpose to their lives. Unfortunately, curious young Janice (Talitha Bateman) seals everyone's fate by opening the house's one forbidden locked door -- the door to Annabelle's room -- thus releasing the doll trapped within and all of her evil powers. While the plot is skeletal and the character development isn't quite enough to engender any real empathy in the audience, the scares are solid. This is due in part to director David F. Sandberg, who made his horror debut with 2016's Lights Out. While he's still finding his directorial footing, Sandberg provides Creation with the same uniquely creative camerawork that made Lights Out such a thrill to watch; his use of light and shadow skillfully evokes old-school thrills (after all, what's scarier than the unknown that lies in the darkness?). The unsettling score (and its occasional absence) also contributes to making the jump scares extra jumpy, while Wan's penchant for freakishly bendy demonic creatures (and the eerie record music they all seem to love) feels like this franchise's spooky watermark. In fact, Wan's signature motifs are interwoven with fun little Easter eggs that delve into the mythology of the entire series (blink and you'll miss a nod to The Conjuring's evil nun, Valek, who's going to get its own origin story next year). The set design is also brilliantly creepy: The Mullins' sprawling, bucolic farmhouse manages to look comfortably familiar while still feeling unsettlingly severe and foreboding, juxtaposing cozy quilts with grotesquely hanging doll parts and garishly tinted stained glass...and crucifixes. Crucifixes everywhere -- and for good reason. Story-wise, this film is nothing to write home about; there are some head-scratching plot holes that will disrupt the suspension of disbelief of even the most genre-loving devotees. However, it does present a decidedly better explanation for the nightmare-inducing porcelain doll than its Satanic-cult-centric precursor, and if you're looking for a good dose of heart-pounding thrills, Annabelle: Creation is worth a trip to the theater.