THE CURSE OF LA LLORONA is a horror film I'm going to be watching very closely. Directed by Michael Chaves and produced by James Wan, this is Chaves's feature directorial debut and Wan felt he did such a good job with it that he has chosen him to take over directing duties on THE CONJURING 3. If Wan thinks Chaves can live up to the work he did on THE CONJURING and THE CONJURING 2, then LA LLORONA must be something special.
Written by Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis, the film has a lengthy synopsis that gives some back story on the titular curse:
La Llorona. The Weeping Woman. A horrifying apparition, caught between Heaven and Hell, trapped in a terrible fate sealed by her own hand. The mere mention of her name has struck terror around the world for generations. In life, she drowned her children in a jealous rage, throwing herself in the churning river after them as she wept in pain. Now her tears are eternal. They are lethal, and those who hear her death call in the night are doomed. La Llorona creeps in the shadows and preys on the children, desperate to replace her own. As the centuries have passed, her desire has grown more voracious… and her methods more terrifying.
In 1970s Los Angeles, La Llorona is stalking the night—and the children. Ignoring the eerie warning of a troubled mother suspected of child endangerment, a social worker and her own small kids are soon drawn into a frightening supernatural realm. Their only hope to survive La Llorona’s deadly wrath may be a disillusioned priest and the mysticism he practices to keep evil at bay, on the fringes where fear and faith collide.
Beware of her chilling wail… she will stop at nothing to lure you into the gloom. Because there is no peace for her anguish. There is no mercy for her soul. And there is no escape from the curse of La Llorona.
Period setting, supernatural threat, I can see how Chaves's work on this movie could make higher-ups believe he was up for the CONJURING challenge. The trailer for THE CURSE OF LA LLORONA can be seen below, and it does make the film appear to be quite dark (literally, the picture is dark as hell) and creepy…
THE CONJURING 3 is an important project to me, though, so I'm going to have to watch this full movie when it's released on April 19, 2019 to really evaluate how comfortable I am with Chaves taking over as director of the cinematic story of Ed and Lorraine Warren.
THE CURSE OF LA LLORONA stars Linda Cardellini, Raymond Cruz, Patricia Velasquez, Marisol Ramirez, Sean Patrick Thomas, Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen, and Roman Christou.