'Creation' Reveals Annabelle's Disturbing Origins

Linda (Lulu Wilson) tries to dispose of the wicked Annabelle. . . 

 Sam Aimed For Darling, He Got Deranged in "Annabelle: Creation"

The demonic doll from Ed and Lorraine Warren’s case files gets a new (and entirely fabricated) origin story in Annabelle Creation. Taking place in the Conjuring universe prior to the years of Annabelle where the porcelain doll preyed on pregnant woman Mia Form (Annabelle Wallis -- yes really, that’s the actress's real name) Creation begins in 1945. 

This prequel spins the sinister tale of how the doll came to be possessed, but before her porcelain body became a vessel for the entity, she was first lovingly carved and painted by Sam Mullins (Anthony LaPaglia), father to a little girl named Bee (Samara Lee) and a friendly faced churchgoer and citizen of his rural small town. Sam and his wife Esther (Miranda Otto) dote on their ever bright and smiling little daughter-- as her favourite record on the turntable in her bedroom croons every night she is their “sunshine” their only “sunshine”. A flat tire on a stretch of highway turns from just a headache to total heartbreak when Bee steps into the road and is struck by a passing car, killing her instantly before her eighth birthday.


Sam and Esther retreat to their sprawling farmhouse estate and shutter themselves up, alone with their grief. Twelve years pass before Sam and Esther decide to open up their spacious house and many rooms to a recently displaced Catholic girl’s orphanage. Under the watchful eye and guidance of young nun Sister Charlotte (Stephanie Sigman), six young girls between the ages of a prepubescent 8 to 16 going on 17 teenagers, bring a rush of life back into the Mullinses manor.

Janice (Talitha Bateman) confesses to Sister Charlotte (Stephanie Sigman) her secret . . .

The only rules, laid out by the now stoic and nearly unrecognizable Mr. Mullins are to one, never disturb Mrs. Mullins who is bedridden and confined to her room, and two, to not go into the locked upstairs bedroom-- the one that belonged to Bee. The girls are all giddiness and giggles at first, breathlessly racing through the rooms and marveling at the sheer enormity of the house, and the lush pastoral grounds. The only ones who aren’t completely smitten with their new digs are best friends Janice and Linda, who are hesitant about the spooky, shadowy house.


Polio-stricken Janice (Talitha Bateman) no more than nine or ten years old gets around with the aid of a metal leg brace and arm crutch. She’s not an invalid though, and manages to maneuver herself around the farmhouse, especially with the assistance of a chair lift that carries her up and down the flights of stairs. Her curiosity gets the better of her when one night she wakes up and finds the door to Bee’s room unlocked. Eyes saucer wide Janice takes in all of the toys and knickknacks in the forbidden room, and is entranced by an enormous and finely crafted doll house, complete with little figurines and furniture that matches the actual house. The rattling of a closet door snags Janice’s attention. Every inch of it papered by prayer sheets, Janice barely blinks an eye before pushing the key in and turning it, unlocking the door and the evil contained behind it. In the darkness, Janice sees a heavy, leering porcelain doll perched on a rocking chair-- Sam’s very same creation from the opening scene.

Janice and Linda are in Bee's room now. . . and it's about to go down. . . 

Janice’s curiosity is not without consequence. Linda (Lulu Wilson, Ouija Origin of Evil) begins to notice some peculiar changes in her friend’s personality and in the atmosphere of the house itself. There are creaks, whispers, and the eerie echoes of the bell from Mrs. Mullins room. Shadow figures begin to pace the floors during the night and unseen hands tug and swipe at the girls. At first the big girls Carol and Nancy are skeptical about any spooks and the things that go bump in the night make them laugh hysterically instead of cry out in fear. It isn’t until one night of whispering ghost stories to each other under a sheet with a flashlight between them, that the girls come to the earth shattering realization that there’s something very wrong with the Mullinses house, and it wants to hurt them.


Janice’s night time wanderings and escapes in Bee’s room get even more sinister when the omnipresent smiling doll begins to appear in more and more unusual places, bringing with it a creepy-crawly darkness and ominous energy. The spirit detaches itself for a mere moment, taking the form of little Bee before telling Janice what she wants most of all is Janice’s soul.


That’s when a full-fledged demonic assault reigns down on Sister Charlotte, the orphaned girls and the Mullinses. Director David Sandberg has plenty of jump scares in his repertoire and fires them at will during the early scenes. But it’s not all gimmicks. The Mullinses house is atmospheric and the time period in the early 1970s is as much as a character as any of the orphaned girls, with the many antique vehicles, furniture and clothing woven into the sets. It adds more spookiness and depth and a little something extra to the horror. Some of the most nightmarish situations are able to happen BECAUSE of that flash-to-the-past vibe where it makes sense to have a barefoot little girl roaming around the grounds of the shadowy farm house with a creaky lantern in search of a well on the property to toss a psychotic doll down.

Annabelle Creation's narrative is crisp and concise if not a touch predictable at moments, especially when it comes to Esther’s mysterious condition and how the doll ended up becoming such a conduit for evil in the first place. But still, it’s not unruly or especially flimsy, and watching it in a dark theatre with the volume on high makes for a heart-pounding two hours. With impressive acting chops shown from even the youngest of the girls and slick cinematography Annabelle Creation may not have the highest fear factor, but it’s certainly stylish and more than a little chilling.

Start reciting those Hail Marys PRONTO Sister Charlotte!

All photographs from IMDB.