First of all…what?
My two cents is that if you went and chopped up the movie in 20 minute increments and then stitched those pieces together into a film you would have a better plot than what we, as an audience, were subjected to.
I can’t grasp whether it was lazy writing or if that’s what the objective was from the beginning. The dialogue could use a complete makeover. I found myself annoyed by the script due to the fact that the main characters are spoon-feeding us the “important facts” throughout the film.
What’s surprising is that more than half of other films by James Wan do not treat us like babies and give the audience credit that we can understand a semblance of a plot without the need to waste narration on us.
Overall, this film couldn’t pick a direction for a plot (even though it had the potential, the shadows and jump scares, echoes of The Ring villain, hauntings, visions and more).
If you insist on seeing this film and have HBO at the moment, I highly recommend saving a trip to the theater and watching it from the comfort of your home.