The echo of an unfamiliar sound roused me from my deep sleep. As my eyelids slowly parted I tried focusing on the nearly invisible shadows that stood petrified around my bedroom. With no light from the outside, I had to rely on my hearing to make sure the noise was not coming from someone who might be lurking in my room. The sound did not increase in volume; it made a popping noise followed by a short silence. I started panicking, wondering if there was anything in the room that I could use to protect myself. Slowly I rose to a sitting position, waited for several seconds then as quietly as possible stood up, hoping the floor would not groan in the process. The noise did not change as if taunting me to find it. As I slipped quietly out of the bedroom the sound got louder; it was coming from the back of the house. The shadows now more distinct, I was able to make my way to the window where I gently pushed the edge of the curtain aside so I could peer outside. Just as I had my face up to the window another popping noise pierced the quiet. Across the yard I saw one of my neighbor’s casement windows was unhinged, moving in the wind. It was the source of the noise I heard when it would slam into its frame. All the sinister culprits I had imagined quickly dispersed from my mind. Left to my own imagination I can really scare myself sometimes. That is the reason I enjoyed this thrilling horror movie from director James Wan (The Conjuring, Saw). Without blood and gore; James created scenes that did not reveal too much, building a steady tension throughout the film. Having not seen the first movie, I did not feel lost by the story line in this sequel. Josh and Renai Lambert, played by Patrick Wilson (The Conjuring, Watchmen) and Rose Byrne (28 Weeks Later, X-Men: First Class) would need outside help to combat the evil spirits that were terrorizing their son Dalton, played by Ty Simpkins (Little Children, The Next Three Days), when he slept. Even though some of their lines were a bit hokey; I thought Patrick, Rose and Barbara Hershey (Black Swan, Falling Down) as Lorraine Lambert were especially good in the acting department. Some of the scenes relied too much on the music to create impending doom; luckily, I did not find it too annoying. Now that I have seen this movie, I want to see the first one to see if it will stir up my imagination as well as this one did. A couple of brief scenes with blood in it.

2 2/3 stars