Ouija Origin of Evil review: A prequel to 2014’s Ouija arrives in cinemas this Friday. But can it shake of the stink of the first film?
Ouija Origin of Evil review by Kat Hughes.
In 2014 Ouija arrived in cinemas. It didn’t really knock any critics socks off, but did take over $103 million dollars worldwide. Considering that it was made for only $5 million, it has of course got another film. Ouija: Origin of Evil goes down the prequel, rather than sequel, path.
Anyone who has seen the first one will be familiar with the story of Doris, her sister Paulina, and Mother. For those that haven’t seen the original, Ouija: Origin of Evil will fill in the blanks. The year is 1967, widow Alice (Elizabeth Reaser) and her two daughters Doris (Lulu Wilson) and Paulina (Annalise Basso) are coping with life after dad. Alice runs a seance scam business and, after buying a Ouija board in the hopes of boosting business, the family unwittingly invite an authentic evil force into their home. The unwelcome spirit seems to have a unnatural fascination with Doris. Can Alice save her daughter, or will she be lost forever?
Director Mike Flanagan has impressed us so far in his career. His early film Absentia is a head-scratching chiller, and Oculus has some really creepy moments. Sadly, whilst Ouija: Origin of Evil has a couple of interesting moments, overall it’s a messy disappointment.
The main problem is that the film is comfortable to just stay within all the usual tropes and conventions. It is littered with attempts at jump scares and the story is bland and generic. It’s clearly trying to capture the magic of films like The Conjuring, but it fails. Everything we see has been done so many times before and, unfortunately for Ouija, it’s also been done better many times before. In terms of scares – they never really pay off. The make-up decisions are frustratingly generic, it’s all elongated jaw and white eyeballs. Coupled with the usual possessed person scuttling up walls etc. this serves only to make the scary elements feel comical.
There are also no story surprises. Anyone who has seen the first film will already know exactly what will happen in the prequel. Not enough fresh plot points are infused, meaning returning viewers will likely get bored.
Our cast do all they can with the material to hand and all give great performances. They make the first third of the movie engaging; Wilson is especially good as the innocent-turned-villain Doris.
A strong start frustratingly disintegrates into the usual horror tropes. Vastly superior to its predecessor but still has a long way to go to hold up against its peers. In a year of so many strong horror movies Ouija: Origin of Evil really struggles to stand-out.
Ouija Origin of Evil review by Kat Hughes, October 2016.
Ouija Origin of Evil is released in UK cinemas on October 21st 2016.
