Review | The Curse of La Llorona film review: The Conjuring horror universe expands into Latin American folklore
- Linda Cardellini plays a widowed social worker in 1970s Los Angeles, whose family is targeted by the malevolent spirit of a 300-year-old Mexican woman
- The period setting is just a backdrop for what turns out to be a conventional, if occasionally effective, ghost story
2.5/5 stars
After just five films, James Wan’s The Conjuring series has become the second highest-grossing horror franchise in cinema history, with only Godzilla earning more. The producer now brings Latin American folklore into the mix with The Curse of La Llorona, but otherwise the formula remains largely unchanged.
Linda Cardellini plays a widowed social worker in 1970s Los Angeles, whose family is targeted by the malevolent spirit of a 300-year-old Mexican woman. Legend has it that “La Llorona” drowned her own children in a fit of jealous rage, and now wanders the Earth abducting other youngsters in the hope of bringing hers back from the grave.
Initially sceptical, the fiercely agnostic Anna (Cardellini) is forced to reconsider her faith after two young children in her protection wind up dead, and her own son and daughter are subsequently visited by “the weeping woman”.
But when the church and the cops fail to offer adequate protection, Anna turns to Rafael Olvera (Raymond Cruz), a former priest, now unconventional shaman and exorcist, for help protecting her family home.
As with The Conjuring and Annabelle films, the period setting is mere set-dressing for a conventional, if occasionally effective, ghost story. First-time director Michael Chaves, who will also direct next year’s The Conjuring 3, follows Wan’s jump-scare playbook diligently.