The Curse of La Llorona (2019) Review – A Tired and Formulaic Jump-Fest
The Curse of La Llorona: Quick Verdict
The Verdict: A masterfully generic and narratively uninspired entry into the Conjuring Universe that successfully weaponises every tired trope in the jump-scare playbook. The Curse of La Llorona (2019) succeeds only in its technical polish, delivering a high-budget aesthetic that unfortunately masks a “digestive biscuit bland” story. Michael Chaves’ direction is efficient but overly reliant on the “loud noise” school of horror, sacrificing genuine psychological dread for repetitive, predictable startles. Linda Cardellini provides a professional anchor for the proceedings, but the script’s insistence on heavy-handed exposition and illogical character decisions makes it difficult to remain invested. This 1.8 star effort is a technical success but a creative failure that prioritises formula over frights.
Details: Director: Michael Chaves | Cast: Linda Cardellini, Raymond Cruz, Patricia Velásquez | Runtime: 1h 33m | Release Date: 2019
Best for: Fans of the Conjuring Universe looking for a light popcorn horror, and those who appreciate high production values regardless of narrative depth.
Worth noting: Despite being set in the same universe, the film features only a minor cameo from Tony Amendola’s Father Perez to link it to the Annabelle series.
Where to Watch: VOD, Amazon🛒
Rating: 1.8/5 Stars
(A masterfully boring and technically uneven jump-scare horror that fails to translate its fascinating Mexican folklore roots into a compelling or genuinely terrifying experience.)
Welcome to Knockout Horror. Today we are checking out The Curse of La Llorona (2019).
Table of Contents
The legend of La Llorona
She wants your children. That really is pretty much all you need to know about The Curse of La Llorona. La Llorona (The Weeping Woman), for those of you who don’t know, is an actual Mexican folk legend used to terrify children into behaving themselves. Naughty children are told to obey their parents or else La Llorona will come and take them away.
“La Llorona is a Mexican folk legend used to terrify children into behaving. Naughty children are told to obey their parents or else she will come and take them away.”
The story follows our very busy protagonist Anna Tate-Garcia (Linda Cardellini). Anna is a caseworker who helps people who are in difficult situations or who require social assistance. She visits one of her clients, a Mexican lady called Patricia Alvarez (Patricia Velásquez), and finds that she has locked her two boys in a cupboard.
Patricia’s children are put into a care home only for tragedy to strike. In releasing the boys from the cupboard, Anna sparked a chain of events that would put the lives of her family in danger and require the assistance of former priest Rafael Olvera (Raymond Cruz) to put right. The Weeping Woman is here and she wants to take the children away.
I’m sure I don’t need to tell you what type of horror movie this is. It’s part of the Conjuring universe and follows that tried and tested formula of jump-scare horror. Introduce a few characters, give them a bit of backstory and then terrify them with an evil creature jumping out at them. It’s ultra familiar stuff but it shares none of the same excitement as fellow Conjuring style movies like Annabelle Comes Home.
It’s bogged down in story and exposition
One thing that is pretty common with this type of horror movie is the use of a whole ton of exposition. The writers assume the audience have the attention span of a 5 year old off their face on food colourings. The Curse of La Llorona is even more guilty of this than most. Everything is explained in great detail and the assumed lack of knowledge of the audience apparently means we need to be told everything about La Llorona with the exception of her dress size.
This need to explain everything even goes into the minor details of the characters. For example, I kind of get the feeling that Anna’s double-barrel surname is there purely to remind us that Anna is, indeed, non-Latin. This explains her apparent ignorance to the legend of La Llorona. Does La Llorona only seek out children of Mexican heritage?
“The writers assume the audience have the attention span of a 5-year-old off their face on food colourings. Everything is explained in great detail, making it feel bloated.”
Seems like a supernatural, malevolent creature wouldn’t be too interested in discriminating but at least we have that little bit of exposition out of the way. It all feels massively bloated and pointless. We just want to get to the scares, who the hell cares about this vanilla plot?
A cookie cutter plot
The Curse of La Llorona is boring.. There is no other way to put it. The plot is bland and worn out like an over stretched elastic band. So many of the plot points have been done a million times before and in a much better way. Characters are generally one dimensional and plot elements, as well as character reactions, are tired and predictable.
The movie runs around 93 minutes and you feel every minute of it. By the last third you are really itching for it to just wrap up. After spending the majority of the film hoping for something interesting to happen, I just sort of lost focus. The disappointment and boredom leads you to almost drift off and start thinking about something else.
“The Curse of La Llorona is boring; there is no other way to put it. The plot is bland and worn out like an over-stretched elastic band. It’s a waste of time.”
It really doesn’t help that the characters in The Curse of La Llorona are ridiculously stupid. They act in completely the wrong way in every situation. You can predict what they will do next purely by looking at what they shouldn’t do. This impacts both the plot and the horror aspect of the movie. When a movie forces the scares it really detracts from the overall experience and just feels lazy.
Mixed Acting and cinematography
Acting is a mix of adequate and terrible. I applaud the producers for having a majority Latin cast. This really lends itself well to the La Llorona experience and helps you buy into the myth a little. Linda Cardellini is decent as Anna. Patricia Velásquez is pretty convincing as the suffering mother of the two boys.
Raymond Cruz has a bit of a confused delivery as Rafael Olvera. Some of his lines come off a little forced and the character’s humour doesn’t feel very natural. At times it’s almost as though he doesn’t know how loud he has to speak for the mics to pick him up. I would definitely say he was a weak point for such a vital character.
Cinematography is pretty bland for a big budget movie. There is nothing to complain about but nothing to write home about, either. Some of the shots feel really out of place compared with others. Everything can feel a bit confused at times. As I am sure you can imagine, sound production is pretty typical of a jump scare horror. Vocals are low and incidental noises are louder than your average boy racer’s VW Golf with straight pipe exhaust and blow-off valve. You will be straining to hear what a character is saying only to be deafened by a random jump scare; par for the course really.
The Good, The Bad & The Ugly
The Good
- Cultural Backdrop: Utilising a genuine Mexican legend provides a solid mythological foundation that is inherently more interesting than the plot.
- Linda Cardellini: Gives a grounded and emotive performance that elevates the material, even when the character decisions are questionable.
- Technical Polish: The film looks and sounds like a big-budget production, with high-quality practical effects and a crisp (if generic) visual style.
The Bad
- Repetitive Jump-Scares: The film relies almost entirely on loud noises and predictable “pops,” which quickly become tedious rather than frightening.
- Heavy Exposition: The script treats the audience as if they have no prior knowledge, over-explaining every plot point and mythological detail.
- Frustrating Characters: The protagonists consistently make “head-scratchingly dumb” choices purely to move the plot toward the next scare.
The Ugly: The “Dunceville” Logic. Watching characters walk directly into danger they should clearly see coming is the film’s most visceral frustration.
Should You Watch The Curse of La Llorona?
Probably not. It is a 1.8 star film that fails to justify its existence within a crowded franchise. While it has the technical backing of the Conjuring Universe, it lacks the heart, innovation, and genuine dread that made the main series a success. If you are desperate for a mindless jump-scare fix, it’s watchable, but there are far better options available that treat their source material and their audience with more respect. It is an intelligent, technical curiosity that ultimately prioritises volume over value. Skip it.
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