ANNABELLE (2014)

A prequel to The Conjuring set around 1970, Annabelle is about a young married couple, John (Ward Horton) Gordon and his pregnant wife Mia (Annabelle - yes, that's her real name - Wallis), who live in Santa Monica and are very close to their neighbors, Pete and Sharon Higgins, whose adult daughter Annabelle ran off to join a cult some time ago.  On the same evening John gifts Mia with a beautiful Victorian collectible doll she's long been seeking, the couple is caught up in the brutal murders of their neighbors, slaughtered in their home when a crazed Annabelle returns with her psychotic boyfriend, to kill her parents in a satanic ritual a la the Manson family.  The Gordons escape death, thanks to the cops, Annabelle shot and killed holding Mia's doll in her lap.  And when weird things start happening, Mia soon suspects Annabelle's death has brought a demon into their midst - one who wants the soul of her baby to manifest itself on earth.  Some good jump-scares and genuine creepiness, but not quite as well-acted, convincing, or under-your-skin eerie as The Conjuring. (rated R)  B

ANNABELLE trailer