Insidious Review

Rated PG-13 (Thematic Material, Violence, Terror and Frightening Images, and Brief Strong Language)

Running Time: 1 Hour & 43 Minutes

Cast:

Patrick Wilson-Josh Lambert

Rose Byrne-Renai Lambert

Barbara Hershey-Lorraine Lambert

Lin Shaye-Elise Rainier

Leigh Whannell-Specs

Angus Sampson-Tucker

Ty Simpkins-Dalton Lambert

Andrew Astor-Foster Lambert

Directed by James Wan

"It's not the house that is haunted. It's your son."

When director James Wan and writer Leigh Whannell made their debut in 2004 with the film "Saw," it was a breath of fresh air thanks to its unique premise and introduced us to a new horror icon, Jigsaw, played by Tobin Bell. With a $103 million worldwide gross against a measly $1.2 million production budget, "Saw" jumpstarted a new horror franchise with six sequels but unfortunately it devolved into gratuitous blood and gore, losing what made the original so well-regarded in the first place. Part of it might have been Wan exiting as director and only staying on as executive producer with Whannell. Wan’s next films, "Dead Silence" and "Death Sentence," both released in 2007, received negative reviews and failed to repeat the box office success of "Saw." Now, Wan and Whannell reteam for "Insidious," a film that returns to the tried-and-true Haunted House theme with a few wrinkles thrown in. "Insidious" is not entirely original but with its strong cast and tense atmosphere, Wan has created a truly frightening experience that mixes the best elements of "Paranormal Activity," "The Exorcist," and "Drag Me To Hell."  

Josh (Patrick Wilson) and Renai Lambert (Rose Byrne) are a happily married couple with three children, one baby daughter and two sons named Dalton (Ty Simpkins) and Foster (Andrew Astor). They have just recently moved into a new home but their optimism is short-lived as one morning, Josh finds that he is unable to wake up Dalton. The doctors say there is nothing neurologically wrong but for some strange reason, he is trapped in a deep coma-like sleep. Three months later and their son’s condition have not improved but strange occurrences begin to take place at the house. They start off small, like objects moving and doors being opened but they soon escalate, with a demonic voice heard on the baby monitor and ghostly apparitions appearing out of nowhere. Renai becomes so frightened that the family is forced to move to a new house but the paranormal occurrences still continue. Josh’s mother Lorraine (Barbara Hershey) contacts her friend, who happens to be a psychic and an exorcist named Elise (Lin Shaye). After investigating the house, Elise reveals that it is not the house that is haunted, but her son and that a demon seeks to possess his body.

Stylistically, "Insidious" bears a resemblance to Sam Raimi’s 2009’s "Drag Me To Hell" in that it uses sound effects to build a suspenseful atmosphere rather than spilling buckets of blood. For the most part, the film relies on tried-and-true Haunted House clichés during the first half and the inspiration from "Paranormal Activity" (Oren Peli serves as producer) is clearly felt as the strange occurrences start off small and escalate further. What sets it apart is the ‘Boo!’ moments and you’ll certainly jump out of your seat, exclaiming 'Holy Sh*t!' There's no traditional music build-up and it all happens in the most innocuous scenes where it's just people conversing, you relax your guard and bam, it hits you full force with a blaring, dissonant noise. This keeps us on edge as we don't know what Wan might throw at us next. "Insidious" also isn't afraid to get a little ridiculous and there's a nice humorous moment when we're introduced to two ghost hunters named 'Specs' (Leigh Whannell) and Tucker (Angus Sampson), who clumsily comb over the house using their fancy doo-dads. Things get even more far-fetched once Elise arrives and explains what's happening (it involves astral projection), culminating in a crazy séance like Raimi's film. There's also a palpable sense of drama as Josh and Renai are unable to grasp what's going on and feel terrified but more importantly, helpless to save their son. "Insidious" utilizes many elements that have been done to death in other horror films but Wan polishes them to maximum effect and adds a few wrinkles to create a unique experience. What's even more astonishing is that he made this film with less than a million dollars! Once again it goes to show what you can do with only a handful of money combined with a creative vision.

The acting is above-average for a horror film and Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne are entirely convincing as a married couple who finds their lives abruptly disrupted, recalling Ellen Burstyn's role in "The Exorcist." Barbara Hershey (last seen in "Black Swan") is Josh's mother, who knows more than she's letting on and despite the role being way out there, Lin Shaye manages to play Elise with an entirely straight face. The rest of the cast includes Leigh Whannell (who serves as writer) and Angus Sampson as amateur Ghostbusters who inject some levity into what is a bleak and hopeless situation.

Premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 14, 2010 and released on April 1, 2011, "Insidious" has received somewhat mixed reviews with 59% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics found the third act shaky but it still remains as 'a very scary and very fun haunted house thrill ride.' It is competing with two other films, Duncan Jones' sophomore effort "Source Code" and the live-animation flick "Hop." While it may not set the box office on fire, the film should come in at third or fourth place with approximately $10 to $15 million and seeing as it's made on the cheap, that's already a resounding success. There was a respectable turn-out at the theater but like all horror films, it was plagued by teens who just couldn't keep their f*cking mouths shut. Not a single drop of blood was spilled but Wan has taken a less-is-more approach with "Insidious" and while his ideas aren't all that original, he utilizes all the right elements and manages to surprise us once again!

Final Rating: 4 out of 5

"It's not the house that is haunted. It's your son."