A Recap of The Movie ‘The Conjuring: Last Rites’

Movies

Sep 5

Written By VS BRANDS

Plot Synopsis written by Michael Lee

*All Media used in this article is courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Official Trailer: ‘The Conjuring: The Last Rites’ (2025)

Plot Synopsis

The film begins with an early investigation by Ed and Lorraine Warren as they investigate a mysterious antique mirror at an old curiosity shop. Through the mirror, a demonic presence attempts to manifest, causing havoc for the shopkeeper and his young daughter. The Warrens ward off the demon and take possession of the mirror but not before Lorraine gives birth to Judy, a stillborn. The two parents rescue their daughter from the spirit world and bring her back into the living, ensuring their newborns' chance at life. Weary of the circumstances surrounding the antique, the Warrens decide to lose the mirror altogether.

Now in the year 1986, Ed and Lorraine are retired. Instead of investigating paranormal activity, the two are tending to much safer pursuits. That is until the two are beckoned by the Smurl family, who claims their home is haunted. Jack and Janet, the father and mother, live with Jack’s parents, Mary and John. Jack and Janet have four daughters: Dawn, Heather, and Carin and Shanonn, the twins. To celebrate Heather’s birthday, John buys her the very same mirror the Warrens encountered years ago. John, unaware of the mirror's capabilities, gifts the mirror to his daughter.

Things begin to get strange in the Smurl family household. During Heather’s confirmation, the ceiling light in the kitchen crashes to the floor, just missing Heather. Later, the daughters begin to hear disembodied voices, see shadow entities moving from corner to corner, and face inexplicable paranormal phenomena that threaten their safety. Dawn and Heather begin to notice that all activity seems to stem from the mirror, so they attempt to throw it away.

Later, Dawn finds that the mirror has manifested within her as she locates shards of glass within her own body. Terrified at this revelation Dawn collapses and begins to vomit blood. Simultaneously, Jack suffers his own harrowing ordeal, enduring a sexual assault by the entity haunting their home. Driven to their limits and desperate for solutions, the family makes the arduous decision to approach the press and reveal the haunting that has taken over their lives.

At the Warren home, Tony Spera proposes to Judy, but Judy's developing psychic abilities concerning her parents begin to manifest. Judy experiences unsettling visions of the Annabelle doll and a female demon, which attacks her in a mirrored dressing room while she is trying on her wedding dress.

Despite their retirement, the Warrens are asked by Father Gordon to assist the Smurls, but they decline. Father Gordon travels to Pennsylvania for help from the Scranton Diocese, where he is attacked by a demon and commits suicide. During his funeral, Judy touches Father Gordon's coffin and experiences a vision, revealing his death in Pennsylvania. Without informing her parents, she embarks on her own. Ed and Lorraine's frantic search for their daughter ultimately leads them to the Smurl house.

After being persuaded by Judy, who feels an inexplicable pull towards the Smurl residence in Pennsylvania, Ed and Lorraine arrive to find a family plagued by intensifying supernatural phenomena. Objects move independently, chilling whispers permeate the air, and the house itself seems to exude a palpable sense of dread. The malevolent mirror, now identified as the source of these disturbances, radiates an ominous power. Meanwhile, their adult daughter, Judy, who has developed a sensitivity to spiritual energies, also senses the encroaching darkness and finds herself increasingly drawn to the attic mirror, its power exerting a strong pull on her.

As night descends, the spirit within the mirror aggressively invades the Smurl household, disturbingly attempting to possess Judy. Lorraine finds herself locked in the basement, while Tony is trapped outside after their failed attempt to move the mirror to Ed's car. To their horror, the mirror inexplicably reappears in the attic, as if it had never been removed. Simultaneously, the Annabelle doll manifests as a giant in the attic and attacks Judy. A tense, emotional confrontation unfolds as Lorraine utilizes her psychic abilities, joining Judy in a fierce, telepathic battle against the demon trying to take over their family.

In a climactic moment, Judy and Lorraine, acting in perfect unison, successfully expel the entity. The mirror shatters in a burst of supernatural light. Afterward, the Smurls, though visibly shaken and bruised, find solace in their unity and continue to reside in the house for three more years.

After securing the remnants of the cursed mirror in their occult museum, Ed and Lorraine Warren share a quiet exchange. This poignant moment, their last as paranormal investigators, reflects on the cost and meaning of their life's work—a testament to their enduring battle against evil.