Movies directed by James Wan

Aquaman is a reminder of the meager pleasures that can be gained from a generic superhero movie. Devoid of the complex plotting, comprehensive world-building, and narrative twists that defined Marvel’s two big 2018 superhero movies, Black Pa...

Ten years ago, with much fanfare, the DC Extended Universe was born. Warner Brothers, riding the wave of success from Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, decided that rather than stick with stand-alone titles featuring their best-loved supe...

James Wan is among the best horror directors working today. His filmography reads like a “best of” modern scary movies, and The Conjuring 2 is a worthy addition to the list. Although the successful box office performance of The Conjuring ...

The Conjuring represents a member of an increasingly endangered species: the R-rated horror movie that relies more on suspense and scares than blood and gore. That's not to say there are no instances of horrific, stomach-churning visuals in The Con...

Death Sentence is Death Wish for the 2000s. However, in place of the slow-burn intensity of Charles Bronson, we have the guilt-riddled stylings of Kevin Bacon. It's easy enough to guess at what director James Wan was trying for with Death Sentenc...

Furious Seven provides what viewers have come to expect from the long-running The Fast and the Furious series: a string of high-octane, physics-defying action scenes loosely connected by a narrative that occasionally makes rudimentary sense. This tim...

If there's a complaint to be made about Insidious, it's that the film's second half is unable to live up to the impossibly high standards set by the first half. This isn't unusual when it comes to films that include a "reveal"; even Jaws lost a sha...

Insidious: Chapter 2 illustrates that, regardless of his past success in the horror movie field, James Wan is not infallible when it comes to the genre. The second installment of what is likely to become a franchise is disappointing precisely becau...

Saw is for hard-gore horror aficionados only. To appreciate Saw in its full gory, you have to have a penchant for productions that bask in the traditions of the Grand Guignol. While most of the film relies more on psychological tension and terror...