This movie and the conjuring films are just plain crap. I think they try hard to come across clever or effective but fail miserably. Give me movies like Child's Play or The Thing any day, even with their 80s-ness.
shareThey are TOTAL crap. Whenever a door is opened, it'll open slowly even more. Whenever someone's rushing for an open door, it'll slam shut, and every time a person enters a room, the door will slam shut behind them.
There'll always be several scenes in a basement, usually lit by one bare bulb. There'll be some ancient looking toy that plays a tune. Stuff covered in the basement will bear a striking resemblance to a ghost or some creature.
There's LOTS of screaming and running around or running outside and banging on windows. Lots of hugging and crying. Lots of shouting the names of kids over and over. If there's a shadow in any corner, you can bet a demon is hiding in it.
And whatever you do, don't have a wardrobe in your room.
If you're a little kid, you'll walk or talk in your sleep or be possessed, usually by someone who died in the house.
There'll always be a scene involving things falling from walls or being turned upside down. Sometimes, a clock will stop at a certain hour. Not just one clock, but EVERY clock.
Someone will be dragged across the floor, kicking and screaming. Lights will go out at the worst time. Someone will be hidden inside some impossibly small, confining space. We'll see ghosts, none of which look anything but K-Mart Halloween scary. A dog will usually notice the entity before anyone else
There'll always be a scene where a character walks into a room, and behind them, we see the ghost--usually sitting, standing, looking in a window or reflected in a mirror or some other reflective surface. The soundtrack will boom, letting us know that we should be scared.
I could go on and on, but these films are completely predictable and not at all frightening.