Insidious Reviews

It took me a while to watch 'Insidious' and its follow ups, with so much going on with my studies and commitments and with an ever growing watch and review list. Decided to finally watch them all, with the intent of reviewing the latest film as part of my quest to see as many 2018 films as possible and wanting to see how it compared with the previous outings. Also with an appreciation, if not quite undying love, for horror.

Having seen 'Insidious', it is not a horror classic, or at least to me it isn't, and it is understandable as to why people don't like it. Especially if over-familiarity, strangeness and silliness are not for you. Personally, 'Insidious' was, warts and all, worth the too-overdue wait, and it is not hard to see why it has appealed to others. There are a lot of merits executed very well.

For one thing, 'Insidious' llooks great, especially for horror films released in recent years (too many of which have looked like they were made on the schlocky cheap). It looks slick and stylish while having a spooky setting and suitably nightmarish lighting. The music, when used, is haunting and not over-bearing, recorded in a way that is not overly loud or obvious that it spoils the atmosphere (which was great because many horror films seen recently failed in this regard).

Script is not too awkward and is structured coherently, with nothing cheapening it like sluggish exposition or cheesy misplaced humour. The direction is meticulous in detail and clearly shows an engagement and ease with the material. The story takes time to unfold but doesn't get dull, actually really admired the restraint of the first half, meaning that the film started off incredibly well. 'Insidious' is genuinely scary with a great atmosphere, with actual tension, suspense and dread, in a palm-sweating and heart-pounding sense at its best, while not relying too much on jump scares (they are there but have build up and were surprising).

Also liked the characters more than expected. The leads were ones worth caring for, didn't get frustrated with them, wish for more personality or annoyed by them. The ghosts may be overused but have eerie presences and didn't look that cheap to me. The direction is assured and the performances are strong from particularly an intense Lin Shaye and Patrick Wilson handling his character growth believably. Rose Byrne is also as professional as ever.

On the other hand, the restraint does decrease later on and things get a little too over-the-top in some of the second half, very unsubtle over-stuffed kitchen-sink-like. Things do get silly at this point too and less logical, making the sense go out the window. The second half is still intriguing and creepy, the film just worked much better when restrained.

It has been said that 'Insidious' is derivative. Definitely agree with this, the over-familiarity from running through as many modern-haunted-house clichés as can muster and having parts similar to other horror films is all over the film and makes one wish there was more freshness.

Will admit that the final twist is a shock, but instead of being unnerving of ingenious it came over as out of kilter wacky and not easy to take at face value. The whole ending in fact felt rushed.

Summing up, enjoyable and effective but the divisiveness is understandable. 7/10 Bethany Cox

I started this film with a pessimistic attitude, however the film changed my opinion and I started to enjoy it (still knowing it wasn't the best, but good fun and better than a lot of recent horrors). Unfortunatly, it started going downhill again. So overall it was average for me, nearly better. I wouldn't scream for you to go an see it, but I wouldn't tell you NOT to see it either...

Since I kept hearing good things about this flick, especially from my favorite Listal members (jaytoast’s rating : 4 stars, Xanadon’t’s rating : 4 stars, the giraffe’s rating : 5 stars), I was really eager to check it out. Unfortunately, even though it was indeed a decent feature, I didn't manage to see what was so amazing about it and, in my opinion, it was just another overrated horror flick directed by James Wan just like ‘Saw’. I mean, don’t misunderstand me, I thought it was a solid haunted house feature but they didn’t play enough with the rules of the genre and I thought that the whole thing was barely scary. Still, there were some nice elements. For example, I liked how, at least in the beginning, there was no background music at all. It was unexpected and a really refreshing approach and it’s too bad they didn’t keep this until the end. Furthermore, I thought that Rose Byrne was not really convincing. I mean, she was a little bit too young (31 years old) to portray a mother with already 3 kids but I have to admit that she did look really weary and exhausted which did fit the character very well. Furthermore, the last act was actually pretty good with some creepy moments. Still, there were enough misfires. For example, the way they decided to move houses was barely convincing. I mean, of course, one of the oldest clichés in this genre is that the main characters will refuse to move from the haunted house for no convincing reasons. However, here, they decide to move just like that, as if they just changed their pants. In my opinion, to move from one house to another is a huge hassle and, in this case, it didn’t change anything so it felt really pointless. Furthermore, the whole ghostbuster thing was also really bewildering. Indeed, the whole thing became somehow and really suddenly a comedy but it didn’t mix well with the rest of the movie. Eventually, the main issue I had is that the whole thing was fairly cliché and therefore a little tedious, at least to me. Still, it remains a well made flick and I have to admit that I was entertained throughout the whole thing. Anyway, to conclude, even though it was nothing really amazing, it was still a decent horror flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

emmmm....as a thriller-lover I would say it had some very good points..However, it had also a lot of elements that reminded me of other movies like poltergeist, el orfanato etc. You could overlook these and still enjoy the movie..what you can't miss though is that Wilson could be more convincing...Sometimes, I would dare say, he looked like 'ok, ok, I will get after the damn ghost'. I think he would be better in love stories. But that's only my opinion.

Nowadays in the modern generation of cinema, the quantity of films within the horror genre is rapidly increasing (and some are led into being converted 3D), but they are either incredibly cheesy films with a very poor story, lack of character development and rather lame screenplay and direction or they just blow you away in terror and you just love from start to finish. However, as far as Insidious is concerned, the theatrical trailer featured a few references similar to previous horror films that we have seen in the past. So, as a result, there were still high expectations, although it was either going to be loved or hated. Quite frankly, as predicted it manages to be psychologically terrifying to watch, tons of suspense and most importantly: as we have seen in horror films with lots of violence, violence isn’t all what horrors or thrillers are really about.


Admittedly, there are so many similarities that Insidious has with other horror films (specifically Paranormal Activity, Poltergeist and The Exorcist) but it manages to still convert into a whole new story that honours the references, backgrounds and production of those specific films. This is coming from one who absolutely loves horror films; Insidious amazingly manages to terrify so much that lead into literally jumping out of seat, leaning closer to the TV screen and becomes very thought-provoking afterwards. In almost every single aspect of the film, there were familiar references that were used from horror films from the past i.e. Paranormal Activity, The Exorcist and Poltergeist, and there are a few twists and turns in store for you.


Patrick Wilson; perhaps the only well-known Hollywood actor in Insidious from the cast portrays husband and father Josh Lambert who’s trying to protect his family from the demons within the house. He delivers a satisfactory performance and he should appear in more horrors or thrillers in the future. His on-screen wife Renai, portrayed by Rose Byrne, really is this typical hopeless young woman caught in a rather ugly and sticky situation where she is absolutely terrified out of her mind. Although that those kinds of characters are the icing on the cake for horror films, Byrne’s performance expresses that but in a slightly similar way to Shelley Duvall in The Shining by Stanley Kubrick. So, her role overall wasn’t entirely great but was at least satisfactory to endure throughout the 103 minute duration of the film.


At only 10 years old, Ty Simpkins has already been in major Hollywood films such as War Of The Worlds, Little Children and Revolutionary Road, but this time goes on to portray a very different character: completely innocent victim in a coma trapped by a mysterious realm dominated by demons. Although, he isn’t involved in the film very often, he gives a performance to remember as Dalton. Barbara Hershey who recently made a name for herself in Black Swan but who gained huge acclaim and acceptance within the horror genre after her terrifying role in The Entity appears as Josh Lambert’s mother, Lorraine and delivers a very moving and genuine performance. Lin Shaye portrays the psychic Elise Reiner who attempts to help Dalton break free from the demons that are in the house. Her role resembled Max Von Sydow’s role in The Exorcist as Father Lankester Merrin, who in turn aids a young girl from demons.


Everyone will feel familiarised with James Wan as director, who is the co-creator of the famous Saw franchise, and for this reason there were expectations and hints that there was going to be lots of gore and violence in Insidious. However, Wan perhaps goes down a slightly different road this time and concentrates more on the supernatural dialogue than the violence and as a result, exposes a new side of filmmaking within the horror/thriller genre. On the other side is Leigh Whannell who co-created the Saw series with Wan and wrote a few screenplays, reunites once more with Wan and writes a very eerie and spooky screenplay that isn’t only hard to watch on occasions, but is incredibly fun to watch too due to the gripping entertainment that it beholds for its audience. As well as screenwriter, Whannell even makes an supporting appearance in the film as well.


Overall, Insidious is a truly terrifying and really fun horror film that will keep you on the edge of your seat; even for those who aren’t sensitive when it comes to horrors. It is almost like a mixture of Paranormal Activity, The Exorcist and Poltergeist from story down to characters and manages to pull off great references from three films in three different eras of cinema. It’s perhaps not one of the greatest films of 2011, but it is most certainly one that needn’t be missed and should consider checking out!

Insidious is the classic film that keeps the veiwed glued to the screen, and is full of scenes that makes a person miss a heartbeat....I thought the storyline was good to a point.
It lost me when it came to the old women explaining the causes for what was happening to Dalton...my immediate question was, How does she know all this?
But then I had to remind myself that this was just a film. Anything can happen in films!!
The Exorcist was a very low budget movie, but had me crappin' my pants, and seemed very beleivable.
Insidious kept my gripped to a point.
Watch the movie, tell me if you felt the same...
Thanx for reading this review.

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

Insidious represents a collaboration of the Saw creators and the producers of Paranormal Activity, and the result is one of the strongest horror pictures in years. While all signs seemed to suggest that a clunker was imminent - Insidious is a PG-13 horror film about a possessed kid, after all - director James Wan has defied the odds, overcoming a derivative narrative and the limitations of a PG-13 rating to craft a properly chilling and thoroughly riveting horror experience. For those who enjoy watching scary movies, you're in for a treat with Insidious.

As the film kicks off, school teacher Josh (Wilson) and his aspiring musician wife Renai (Byrne) move into a spacious new house with their three kids seeking a fresh start. However, trouble arises for the family when young Dalton (Simpkins) falls into a mysterious coma that the doctors are unable to explain. Soon afterwards, Renai becomes overwhelmed by unexplainable occurrences and terrifying visions of strangers lurking around their residence. Though Josh tries to be supportive by agreeing to Renai's plea for a move, similar situations immediately begin to haunt their next house. Bewildered by the extraordinary state of affairs, Renai seeks help from spiritual expert Elise (Shaye) and her pair of technicians (Sampson, Whannell).

Essentially Poltergeist meets Paranormal Activity, Insidious gets practically everything right - the atmosphere, soundtrack, photography, direction, script and acting are all top notch, combining to create the most skin-crawling mainstream horror movie of 2011. James Wan did not have big bucks on his side here (reports place the budget at $1.5 million), but the limited scope works to the picture's benefit as the "less is more" approach heightens tension. While there are a few lazy jump scares, they are often effective thanks to the stylish photography and Wan's sharp eye for sinister images. Most importantly, Insidious is not hindered by its PG-13 rating - it never seems neutered because Wan recognised the importance of atmosphere and story, two elements of which are vital for creating a successful horror movie. Wan and writer Leigh Whannell also paid attention to the story's human element, which reinforces the inherent terror of the situations that the protagonists become entangled in. And towards the climax, the production transforms into a bit of a macabre funhouse, with tension being released through a smattering of campy humour.

Whannell (who also stars as a paranormal investigator) wrote the script for Insidious with a list of horror clichés beside him to ensure that he avoided as many of them as possible, and the results are sublime. It's easy to respect the characters and believe in them, because they seem like realistic, intelligent human beings rather than contrived script puppets. For instance, the old cliché of "Why don't they just leave the house?" is addressed - after one particularly bad night, Renai and Josh actually move. Then when the paranormal occurrences persist, they consult experts. And Josh's reluctance to believe in the paranormal theories seems natural rather than contrived. While Wan's script borrows structural elements from movies like The Amityville Horror, Poltergeist and The Exorcist (just to name a few), originality in the horror genre is not always important. Rather, a horror movie just needs to scare viewers with a genuinely well-made excursion into pure terror. Insidious does just that, and does it remarkably well despite a few weak spots (for instance, one shot of the demon crawling along a wall towards the end looks pretty lousy). This all culminates with a final scene that transcends convention in a terrifying fashion.

Run-of-the-mill horror often pictures falter on the acting front, but Insidious excels with a cast that's confidently above average. Front and centre is the Australian-born Rose Byrne (Get Him to the Greek, Knowing), whose nuanced performance as Renai is a standout. Whenever her character is scared, Rose sells it effortlessly, all the while emanating movie star charisma to allow us to be invested in her plight. Alongside her, as Josh, Patrick Wilson (Watchmen, Hard Candy) is constantly believable and engaging. In the supporting cast, meanwhile, Angus Sampson and Leigh Whannell appear as Ghostbuster types who investigate the paranormal occurrences, and they did a great job of selling both comedy and intensity. Rounding out the main players is Lin Shaye as the clairvoyant with experience in the field of the paranormal. Shaye's performance gives the material a tremendous amount of welcome gravitas.

Insidious can be likened to a funhouse ride in a theme park, as the film takes its audience on a tour full of creepy images and spooky things which pop out at them, and the terror refuses to alleviate until the ride is over. It also shares similarities with Sam Raimi's style of terror, most notably Drag Me to Hell where the thrills and chills are created through simple images, a bombastic soundtrack and a cats-walking-on-instruments score.

8.2/10

This movie is great up until the moment they introduce you to the "soul traveler" concept, which completely ruins the terror. Then it becomes a mellow father rescues son story that not even the little plot twist at the end manages to save.

The movie totally looses itself in caricature and satire of the genre poorly developed after more than a hour projection with the film allegedly trying to look serious, and then descends toward the ridiculous. Quite poorly drafted, lost, silly. An attempt to look like Poltergeist, and when they realized that it wouldn’t feasible, tried the output of make fun of itself. The fact that the ghosts were laughing was completely unnecessary (in fact I believe they all could have stayed out of the film). The scene where the devil was teasing his nails was priceless, I laughed when I saw it, then it took all the climate of horror, I mean, it screwed all. To avoid spoilers I’d suggest you to watch and see how a movie can get lost in a story so totally cool.