The Nun II (English) Movie Review: On the whole, THE NUN II works due to the plot, climax and for not following the cliched style.

THE NUN II is the story of a devil that rears her ugly head once again. Four years after the events of the first part, a series of shocking murders take place in different churches in Western Europe. After Father Noiret (Pascal Aubert) burns to death in Tarascon, France, the church asks Sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga) to investigate. She's assigned because the church believes that Valak (Bonnie Aarons) is back and also because she has experience in defeating the evil spirit. Irene is joined by Sister Debra (Storm Reid) and they both begin their investigation in Tarascon. On the other hand, somewhere in Europe, Maurice aka Frenchie (Jonas Bloquet) lands up at a boarding school and starts working there as a servant. He develops a bond with a young student, Sophie (Katelyn Rose Downey) and her mother Kate (Anna Popplewell) who's also a teacher in the same school. Strange things start happening in the school and it’s all connected with Maurice. What happens next forms the rest of the film.

Akela Cooper's story is great and takes the franchise forward nicely. Ian Goldberg, Richard Naing and Akela Cooper's screenplay is gripping and most importantly, it’s not clichéd. But overall, the narrative could have been tighter. The dialogues are simple.

Michael Chaves' direction is great and much better than his previous film, THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT [2021]. He has handled several moments like a pro, especially the intermission point and the climax. Also, two tracks are running parallel and it adds to the tension and intrigue. Lastly, he has introduced several interesting elements for the next part of THE NUN also THE CONJURING 4.

On the flipside, at 111 minutes, the film moves slowly. The makers don't mention the location and hence, it becomes difficult to get a hang of which character is situated where. The makers have tried their best to explain the plot points. Yet, a few aspects might go bouncer. Some developments are bewildering. To see a group of people making merry less than 12 hours after the gruesome murder of a close person is unconvincing. Also, the track of the bullying students is not summed up properly. One also wonders what exactly was the relevance of the hotel manager unable to find the reservation of Irene. It contributes nothing to the story.

Speaking of performances, Taissa Farmiga yet again delivers a fine performance. Jonas Bloquet has a different arc in this film and delivers a first-rate act. Storm Reid lends able support. Katelyn Rose Downey is lovely and plays the difficult part with ease. Anna Popplewell is decent. Bonnie Aarons is very scary as Valak. Others like Pascal Aubert, Maxime Elias-Menet (Jacques), Suzanne Bertish (Madame Laurent), Gaël Raës (Cedric) and the bully girls also do well.

Marco Beltrami's music does justice to the setting and genre. Tristan Nyby's cinematography is appropriate. Stephane Cressend's production design is authentic. Agnes Beziers' costumes are realistic. The action is not as gory as expected. VFX is top class. Gregory Plotkin's editing is too slow in some scenes.

On the whole, THE NUN II works due to the plot, climax and for not following the clichéd style. It will face a very tough time at the box office as it clashes with the monstrous JAWAN. As a result, the film might take a while to get noticed and attract moviegoers in cinemas.

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