The generations-old curse of “La Llorona” has been passed down throughout Latin American cultures to keep sneaky children from running away at night, but for stateside crowds, the James Wan-produced Conjurverse spinoff is an introduction. Director Michael Chaves – who’s already slated to helm The Conjuring 3 – treats The Curse of La Llorona as his first crack at Wan’s signature brand of haunted ghosthunter horror, but it comes with responsibility. Previous specters “The Crooked Man” and “The Nun” unveiled themselves alongside other exorcized demons housed within The Conjuring universe, but The Curse Of La Llorona starts on fresh footing – no previous cameos – as an import with rich Latin histories worth mining. A legend that boasts such inherent identity could bolster the “Conjurverse” even further while representing wider moviegoing audiences with assured scares to boot.  

 

Warner Bros has The Curse Of La Llorona set to terrorize on April 19th, so she’ll be here before you know it. In the meantime, here are three reasons to get excited about The Weeping Woman and her impending international scream-a-thon tour. 

  

1. What Lurks Beneath The Surface Will Getcha 

As legend states – visualized during Chaves’ 1600s-set opening – La Llorona (“the weeping woman”) was a beautiful woman who drowned her children out of revenge for her husband’s disloyal treatment. Now, she hunts fresh meat as a pale figure with bloody tears who snatches kiddos away from distraught mothers. In this specific case, social worker Anna Tate-Garcia’s (Linda Cardellini) two charges find themselves pursued after she provokes the wicked witch’s curse during an investigation of the Vasquez family. La Llorona’s mark is that of cigarette burn rashes on your arm, scalded instantly by her touch, but Chaves’ most dreadful visions come after La Llorona’s already reached her targets – dragging helpless boys and girls underwater.  

Two instances make me think Chaves is auditioning for Wan’s horror-focused Aquaman spinoff based on the Trench, in specific. First, as Samantha (Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen) receives a shampoo massage and dunking from La Llorona in the bathtub, holding Anna’s daughter underwater as suds splash while Samantha’s arm’s flail. Second, when Samantha is yanked outside during one of La Llorona’s many supernatural attacks, Anna then forced to dive into her swimming pool’s deep end to battle La Llorona – Anna’s flashlight cutting through the murky nighttime waters to spotlight La Llorona’s screeching face. They’re wet and wild accents that deliver The Curse of La Llorona’s most memorable encounters while not wasting aquaphobia manipulation. 

  

2. Linda Cardellini Slays As The Mama Bear  

 

As of late, Ms. Cardellini’s been relegated to playing housewife characters in everything from Green Book (Tony Lip’s personal chef) to Hawkeye’s better half in Avengers: Age of Ultron, but The Curse of La Llorona allows the powerful performer to clench her fist and take center stage. Anna’s single parent balances childcare, day job dependencies, and battling paranormal entities like if Scooby-Doo’s Velma (who – fun fact – she portrayed in the 2002 live-action movie) grew up into a choice-cut badass. Unafraid to do whatever it takes when La Llorona comes calling, maternal in her urgency when pleading for her children’s lives. You’re here for Cardellini, that’s for certain. 

Anna cycles through every conceivable emotion as La Llorona shifts her focus from Patricia Alvarez’s (Patricia Velasquez) offspring to wee ones Samantha (Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen) and Chris (Roman Christou). Denial, disbelief, anger, fear – but her actions inspire courage without becoming another leading genre stereotype. As ousted exorcist Rafael Olvera (Raymond Cruz) enters the picture, Anna’s scoffs at inexplicable magic’s turn to blind faith when twirling chicken eggs explode in bloody bursts. Cardellini does it all, but once primality kicks into natural instincts, she’s never better. Let’s hope these roles keep coming for Linda Cardellini. 

   

3. “And now, for something completely different…”

Viewers can learn so much about other cultures through cinema, and studios – given proper means – have a responsibility to tell stories from all different walks of life. James Wan’s desire to expand his Conjurverse into different countries, pulling from nightmares in foreign traditions, proves a chilling constant: horror is a universal language. The Curse of La Llorona may be set in 1970s Los Angeles, and follow a Caucasian lead character, but it’s an unsettling introduction to a character most American audiences aren’t yet familiar with (unless you walked Universal’s dynamite Halloween Horror Nights La Llorona maze). Truthfully, more could have been done to explore the Latinx heritage on a lesser whitewashed scale – we’re still talking about a studio film here with so, so many decision makers, after all – yet there’s still distinct value in opening such a door. 

Raymond Cruz’s portrayal of a ritualistic man of God who’s excommunicated by the church for his demonic seekings allows for diverse influences to seep in. Fire tree seeds, native crucifixes, points of view that are typically delivered from other directions – The Curse Of La Llorona translates far-away horrors for mass viewership (as much as a studio picture seeking to appeal to all can allow). Michael Chaves begins his Conjurverse grooming process, crosses borders to mine a new horror villain, and establishes some creepy child endangerment along the way (that umbrella reflection, fam). Once you hear La Llorona’s whisper, you’ll understand why Wan’s been so successful in the business of producing period placement horror with international flavors. 

 

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