"The Conjuring," a retro horror movie based on a haunting case worked by paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, opens this Friday. I saw the press screening a few weeks ago and have slept with the lights on ever since.
"Lights off is fine," Ron Livingston, who stars as the dad whose family is vexed by spirits, said during an interview about the movie. "The thing about demons is, 'lights on' doesn't help."
Thanks, man.
The movie, also starring Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson and Lili Taylor, is set in Rhode Island but filmed in Wilmington, N.C. It tells the chilling story of a family that moves into an old farmhouse, where creepy stuff starts happening almost immediately.
“I was really blown away by it,” Livingston said. “It’s as scary to watch even knowing what’s going to happen. It’s scary for me to watch.”
The movie reflects its 1970s time period not only with the vintage threads and wheels (plus the scene where people say things like “groovy” and “far out”) but also in its pacing.
“There’s a real throwback element to this movie,” Livingston said. “The story doesn’t treat anyone as disposable.”
He’s a fan of horror films in general and “The Conjuring” in particular.
“Great movies transcend the genre,” he said. “Horror movies are like the modern-day Greek tragedy, dealing with forces that are supernatural and larger than life.”
Livingston, known for roles in movies such as "Office Space," was in metro Atlanta for last year's family fantasy movie "The Odd Life of Timothy Green," which also starred his wife, Rosemarie DeWitt. She is here now filming "Kill the Messenger."
"Sex and the City" fans also may remember Livingston as Carrie's angsty writer boyfriend Jack Berger, who breaks up with her on a Post-it. ("I can't. I'm sorry. Don't hate me." Speaking of horror scenes …)
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