Ouija: Origins of Evil

Ouija: Origin of Evil is a 2016 American supernatural horror film directed and edited by Mike Flanagan and written by Flanagan and Jeff Howard. The film is a prequel to the 2014 film Ouija and stars Elizabeth Reaser, Annalise Basso, Lulu Wilson, Parker Mack and Henry Thomas.

The film was released on October 21, 2016, by Universal Studios, grossing over $81 million. It received positive reviews, with many praising it as a significant improvement over its predecessor.

Plot
In 1967 Los Angeles, widowed mother Alice Zander (Elizabeth Reaser) unwittingly invites authentic evil into her home by adding a new stunt to bolster her séance scam business. When the merciless spirit overtakes her youngest daughter Doris (Lulu Wilson), the small family must confront unthinkable fears to save her and send her possessor back to the other side.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) The film has a very strong 60's theme. Not just because of the fashion, car designs and music, but it also presents the 60's Universal Studios logo in the opening, and has that black oval that pops up in the upper right corner of the screen.
 * 2) The idea of con-artist fortune teller who accidentally summons a demonic entity is pretty clever, especially since it's centered around a board game.
 * 3) Great acting.
 * 4) Well-written story.
 * 5) It is a MASSIVE improvement over its 2014 predecessor.
 * 6) Lulu Wilson's character's goodbye message to a young boy about what it feels like to be strangled to death is an excellent scene that it's spine-chilling. No scary images, sounds or blood needed, just a child delivering one monologue about asphyxiation.
 * 7) Very intense and scary moments, making full use of it's PG-13 rating.

Reception
Ouija: Origins of Evil received generally positive reviews from critics and audiences with many praising it as a significant improvement over its predecessor and currently hold an approval rating of 82% Rotten Tomatoes based on 105 reviews, with an average rating of 6.3/10, making it the highest-rated film to date produced by either Hasbro Studios or Platinum Dunes. The site's critical consensus reads, "Ouija: Origin of Evil swerves its franchise's planchette unexpectedly to YES with a surprisingly scary and dramatically satisfying follow-up to its lackluster predecessor."