John and Mia are soon to be first time parents whose lives are turned upside-down one night when they are attacked by members of a Satanic cult. The couple and their unborn child survive the attack, but Mia, justifiably, becomes nervous, anxious, paranoid that another attack will come. And it doesn't help that the big creepy doll that John gave her - the very doll clutched by one of her attackers as the cultist killed herself - seems to be... doing things.
Annabelle the doll is a very frightening creation. This movie only exists because audiences were terrified of Annabelle in her few scenes in The Conjuring, and rightfully so. It is in our nature to be creeped out by that uncanny valley-type representation of humanity that just isn't quite right, and Annabelle fits that in spades. The very best thing this movie has going for it is a well sculpted prop.
However, what the movie has going against it is familiarity. Magic, Devil Doll, Child's Play, Dead Silence... we've seen just about every move a doll can make, and every scare they can throw at us. Compound the doll thing with the fact that the movie references/borrows/apes ideas from Rosemary's Baby, The Omen, The Amityville Horror, and so on, and you can't escape the feeling that there was little new to be had here.
That's not to say it's bad. I enjoyed Annabelle for what it was, for the most part - although I did want to throw my balled-up napkin at the screen about five minutes before it was over. Annabelle had pretty good atmosphere, some effective imagery, a very good scene involving a basement and an elevator, and some mostly likable characters. What it didn't have was anything we haven't seen before, or really anything to write home about.
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