My quick rating – 6.7/10. If this truly marks the end of the Warrens’ cinematic run, The Conjuring: Last Rites makes sure to open on a hauntingly high note—even if it doesn’t quite close the case with the same power. Director Michael Chaves, returning after The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, delivers what’s easily his most confident entry in the series. Though the film still struggles to recapture the electrifying grip that James Wan brought to the originals.
The film opens with a chilling 1964 sequence featuring a young Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga once again in top form) interviewing a woman named Victoria about a haunting that immediately sets an emotional undertone for the story. It’s the kind of opening that pulls you in and reminds you why this franchise worked so well in the first place. From there, we jump to 1986—the case that, as the ominous text crawl warns us, will tear apart the Warrens’ family and mark the end of their paranormal careers.
Mia Tomlinson joins as Judy, their now-grown daughter, and she gives the film an added emotional dimension. She may also be where the torch gets passed, if they choose to continue the franchise. The story, written by this team, ties together the lives of two families in ways that feel organic, and the trademark “based on a true story” tagline adds its usual layer of goosebumps. One of the movie’s strengths lies in how it slips eerie details and ghostly imagery into otherwise normal moments—you’re never quite sure what’s real or imagined, which makes the quieter scenes some of the most effective.
Unfortunately, where the film’s beginning and buildup excel, I thought the ending falls short. The tension never quite reaches the height fans might expect for the supposed grand finale. It’s not that the scares aren’t there—they just don’t linger the way Wan’s did. Still, the cast carries the emotional weight beautifully. Wilson and Farmiga once again prove they are the heart of this franchise, grounding the supernatural chaos in warmth and determination.
Chaves clearly took notes from his previous outing; his direction here feels steadier and more atmospheric. The cinematography captures that familiar shadowy dread, and the production design delivers those little period details that make the Warrens’ world so believable. Yet even with these strengths, Last Rites stops short of greatness. It’s a solid, respectful closing chapter, but not the knockout blow that would’ve made it truly unforgettable.
The film ends with a poignant nod to the real-life Ed and Lorraine Warren, reminding audiences that before ghost-hunting became a meme or a TikTok trend, these two helped shape the modern mythos of the paranormal. It’s a fitting farewell, even if the series deserved just a bit more power in its final exorcism.
