Movie Review: The Conjuring - Last Rites

The Conjuring: Last Rites is a 2025 American supernatural horror film directed by Michael Chaves and written by Ian Goldberg, Richard Naing, and David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick. Based on the true-life investigations of the Smurl haunting, the story is co-authored by James Wan and Johnson-McGoldrick. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga return as paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, joined by Mia Tomlinson and Ben Hardy. As the ninth and final installment of The Conjuring Universe, the film serves as the closing chapter to one of the most successful horror franchises of the past decade.

I think it’s a cute send-off and a decent closing to the franchise, but honestly, the movie was mid at best. The most fun I had was sitting in the cinema, watching everyone else scream, freak out, and give live commentary, it almost felt like the audience was part of the experience.

To be fair, it’s not easy to reinvent the wheel when it comes to horror or any genre. I can forgive horror films for recycling the usual jump scares, eerie sound design, or spooky setups, but I have a harder time forgiving it in a sequel, especially one tied to such an iconic series. If you’ve seen the previous three Conjuring films, you won’t miss much here. The scares, the atmosphere, and even the story beats felt too familiar, leaving me wondering: have I not seen this before?

Maybe it was intentional, perhaps the filmmakers wanted to tap into nostalgia as a way of sending off the series. Or maybe they simply ran out of ideas and leaned into what was already proven to work. Either way, the result is a film that feels predictable and uninnovative.

I’m giving The Conjuring: Last Rites a 6/10. It’s not terrible, but it doesn’t do justice to the legacy of the franchise.