Review: “Malignant” Shows Cinematic Horror is Back

Unfortunately, any hope of director James Wan abandoning his penchant for jump scares is abandoned in the very first scene of Malignant, which serves as a return to the genre for Wan (who hasn’t directed horror since 2016’s The Conjuring 2). However, Wan has proven himself to be a reliable measure for success — whether that holds up during a global pandemic is to be determined — and while I’m not thrilled about mainstream modern horror being mainly jump scare-focused, Malignant is effective in what it strives to do.

After a Saw-style intro sequence with very similar music, we meet Madison (familiar horror actor Annabelle Wallis), a woman trapped in an abusive relationship with her husband (Jake Abel). Without spending too much time on character, Malignant delves into horror very quickly — household objects begin moving, lights turn on and off, and weapons are fashioned from strangely-shaped decorations. Madison begins to see visions of some incredibly grisly murders, and from there it’s a hop, skip and a jump to deducing that she’s somehow connected to the victims.