In 2014, Ouija brought us a boring, clichéd snooze-fest. When I saw the trailer for Ouija: Origin Of Evil, I could already tell this prequel was going to be superior to the first film. I was correct with that assumption.

(Synopsis provided by IMDb.com): In 1967 Los Angeles, a widowed mother and a new stunt to boost their seance scam business, inviting an evil presence into their home. 

It didn’t surprise me at all when I found out Origin Of Evil was directed by Mike Flanagan. Flanagan has really impressed me in the past with Oculus (2013) and Hush (2016).

To start off, I really liked how Origin Of Evil told the story of Paulina and Doris Zander. For those who don’t know or don’t remember, Paulina was played by Lin Shaye in the first Ouija film. It was a very interesting story. The main characters are very sympathetic and showed a lot more personality. Lulu Wilson (Doris) gave an amazing performance throughout the film.

Of course, it has the usual jump-scares, but the film legitimately creeped me out! Of course, possessed Doris bears a striking resemblance to a certain spirit in the Lights Outs short film:

But, that’s not a complaint. Frankly, I think that’s why Origin Of Evil scared me more than the Lights Out feature film. The ending was a typical, over the top, Ouija ending, but with a little more heart.

Final thoughts:

Don’t let the horrendous mess that is Ouija (2013) keep you from watching its prequel. Origin Of Evil brought everything I wished the first film brought. It brought a proper backstory and turned Ouija into a proper franchise. I’ll recommend Origin Of Evil to anyone, any day!