Genuinely scary in some parts, downright silly in others, and undeniably entertaining as a whole, Insidious is both a tribute and solid entry in the ever expanding demonic possession sub-genre.
Director James Wan and writer Leigh Whannell are not ones for subtlety. Creators of the Saw franchise and other horror nasties, there shtick is to aim straight and hit hard and so it goes with Insidious, a creepy little thriller with a mish-mash of new and burrowed ideas, that just may be their best film yet.
Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne star as Josh and Renai Lambert, a suburban couple who move their family into a new home with hopes of starting fresh. When their son Dalton (Ty Simpkins) falls into a coma, their lives are turned upside down as demonic entities come scrapping for Dalton’s body while his soul is trapped elsewhere.
Insidious is a movie which wears its influences heavy and proud. The Exorcist and Poltergeist especially are films which have burrowed themselves into the minds of Wan and Whannell and reborn into one chilling amalgamation, spurred on by a batshit crazy score by Joseph Bishara and a wonderfully over the top performance by the Farrelly Brothers regular Lin Shaye, who plays the spiritual medium role with the right type of tone and energy.
Throughout the rules of this sub-genre are followed closely. There is the reason vs faith dilemma found in Rose and Wilson’s parents in duress, the use of dreams as bad omens, and the usual bumps and grunts and screams of supernatural forces wanting their pound of flesh.
But Insidious also proves itself to be a genuine entry in the demonic possession film canon. A unique séance sequence (another stalwart of the sub-genre) is both berserk and entertaining, while the use of astral projection is a feature rarely used in horror movies, and perhaps for a good reason, with the third act descending into silliness akin to a ghost ride set in an alternate dimension.
Perhaps the best thing about Insidious is its complete lack of pretention. Wan and Whannell know exactly what they want, and that is to scare and entertain the audience with a superbly crafted horror movie ripped from the old school and retooled for the new, in the process proving that they can create a genuinely scary movie just as effectively as they could make a horrific one. |