10 Awesome Horror Films That Didn't Rely On CGI
9. The Conjuring 2
James Wan and screenwriter Leigh Whannell have had plenty of success at Blumhouse generating scares with practical effects, but rarely has anyone's work in the genre leave audiences convinced that what they saw couldn't possibly have been done without digital enhancement.
Further delving into ghost hunters/potential delusional con artists Ed and Lorraine Warren, The Conjuring 2 focuses on their experiences with The Enfield Poltergeist, a spectre that terrorized an English family in 1977.
Wan has stated the only CGI was used to remove objects around the house and streets that would not be period appropriate. Their biggest success, however, was with the Crooked Man – a thin, top hat-donning creature that bends in seemingly inhuman ways.
That he's often filmed in silhouette suggests a CGI creation, but he was in fact played by contortionist Javier Botet – the new Doug Jones of terror. Too many ghost movies have fast moving, disjointed freakshows jumping out at you, Wan took that approach and made it practical.