’The Conjuring: Last Rites' marks the fourth and final chapter in the main 'Conjuring' series, and while the Warrens (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, still radiating undeniable on-screen chemistry) deserved to go out with a bang, what they got was more of a polite cough.
At over two hours, this is a long, slow burn that mistakes repetition for tension. The same jump scare is recycled like a TikTok sound you’re already sick of.
Which is a shame, because 'The Conjuring' films – at least the core ones – were always the crown jewel of the universe. 'Annabelle' and 'The Nun' may have their chaotic fanbases, but the mainline 'Conjuring' entries had a certain weight. They were spooky, tender, and anchored by Wilson and Farmiga’s sincere, heart-filled performances. And to be fair, that throughline hasn’t changed. Their Ed and Lorraine are still the best part of the film, grounding the chaos with genuine warmth. You buy into their love, even as the horror around them falls flat.
This time around, the horror hinges on a cursed mirror that torments a Pennsylvania family, eventually dragging Ed, Lorraine, and their daughter Judy back into the fray. The year is 1986, and the film leans hard into its period setting. The wardrobe, the hair, the wallpaper, all of it looks great. Where it stumbles is in the storytelling. For the first half, it feels like two separate films: on one side, the Warrens trying to enjoy quiet suburban life, and on the other, a family enduring a textbook haunted-house spiral. The threads don’t properly weave together until midway through, and by then the sluggish pacing has already dulled the tension.
And yet – credit where it’s due – the ending lands on a surprisingly tender note. Without dipping into spoilers, it actually follows through on closing the book, instead of pulling the usual 'just when you thought it was over…' trick that so many horror franchises love. It’s a clean, heartfelt farewell to Ed and Lorraine. Those final minutes don’t erase the slog that came before, but they do soften it – like a decent dessert after a disappointing main course.
But here’s the thing: horror in 2025 has been stacked. The bar is high, and this film stumbles right under it. When every scare feels copy-pasted, slow burn slips into slow crawl. Still, in the grand scheme of the 'Conjuring' universe, it’s not scraping the bottom. It clears 'The Nun' movies and a couple of 'Annabelle' entries, landing somewhere around fourth place out of ten. Respectable enough, but far from iconic.
So, is 'Last Rites' a worthy finale? Kind of. It’s serviceable, safe, and a little sentimental. But if the 'Conjuring' well is this dry, it’s definitely time to stop drawing water. There really is nothing left to be conjured.
