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'The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It': Twitter reviews horror flick, says 'Badly missing James Wan's direction'

"It was 80% just loose threads so WB has more Warrenverse toys to spin movies off from,"

What makes 'The Conjuring' relatable? For some it's the true events the franchise is based out of it, others love the realism and how it steers clear of jump scares, at least some of the initial entries did. For the threequel, James Wan apparently hand-picked Michael Chaves, who is known for his work in 'The Curse of La Llorona', a part of 'The Conjuring' universe. But did the switch work in the film's favor? Let's find out.

Keyboard warriors are not pleased with the output. Most are of the opinion that it was "not scary" and rather underwhelming, which isn't a scathing commentary given how much of a slow-burner the film is. Agreed, horror films are not your regular-paced action-packed thriller, but the first two films which had Wan at the helm told the stories in a different, more cohesive way. 

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Chaves' efforts need to be acknowledged. The fact that he took up a film that has seen massive success at the box office and set up high expectations among its following shows he's ready for challenges. That attitude alone should earn him applauds if nothing else. 

"This was awful. I was rooting so hard for Chaves but damn it was just so not scary," one user commented on a Reddit thread and added: "It just felt completely inconsequential and mundane after the last one and spoilers the lack of “the devil” was such a missed opportunity after having Valak as a villain. Such a waste of a good story. I can’t blame James Wan for not passing up on that Aquaman money, but it’d be a shame if this series ends with such a dud."

But Chaves has the perfect explanation for the shake-up. "This was a case that James really wanted to crack into," he told to EW ahead of the release and added: "For the first few films, it was almost too dark and too controversial. I think at this point both James and the producers and the studio wanted to shake up the franchise and to take it into a new direction and everybody felt like this was the case to do it."

'The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It' details Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren's (Vera Farmiga) toughest case of their career that spanned over several decades. During this time, they investigated 10,000 plus cases across continents. In 1981, Arne Cheyenne Johnson stabbed his landlord with a pocket knife, following which he was taken into custody. His attorney argued Johnson was possessed by the demon. However, the court and jury were not convinced with the argument and found him guilty of first-degree murder. 

Meanwhile, comments poured in on social media.

"I hate to say it, but one thought on #TheConjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It...it’s badly missing James Wan’s direction," one tweeted, while another pointed out: "This one wasn’t for me. I’d add the script as a step down from the previous installments as well." A third posted: "It was 80% just loose threads so WB has more Warrenverse toys to spin movies off from. You could see the studio agenda poking through like a face through a waterbed."  

'The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It' is streaming on HBO Max and will be on the OTT platform until July 4.