The new shocker from the director of last year's Paranormal Activity is a bizarre movie that narrowly avoids being one of the worst movies this year, instead ending up maybe being one of the best. Insidious opens with a young family moving to a new house and all seems 'scary movie by the numbers' as eldest son Dalton befalls a suspicious accident in the loft before falling into a curious coma. From that point on, unrelenting tension and suspense build before paying off in a succession of arm flailing scares and behind the hands cowering. The first 45-50 minutes of this movie are so nerve stretching that creaking door hinges are enough to set your eyes darting around the screen hunting for danger. From its strong starting point the film then moves from the sublime to the ridiculous. Some sloppy editing rears a nasty head, the family's father (Patrick Wilson) becomes ever more wooden, and a change of tone almost kills the suspension of belief entirely. However, director James Wan is clearly some kind of horror savant, capable of pulling out yet further heart-thumping frights and unsettling unease, despite occasional clumsiness. His bizarre final act defies explanation, using blatantly tacky clichés and B-movie style imagery to unintuitively ramp up the fear, all while testing your trust of the story and dicing with losing the audience entirely. Somehow, despite teetering on a tipping point of hilariously bad, Insidious' self-awareness along with obvious and frequent references to past horror greats, manages to be a memorable adrenaline soaked thrill, as entertaining as it is delightfully terrifying. (DW/BMcC)
Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of all articles, advertisements and other insertions in the Website, the publishers can accept no responsibility for any errors or omissions or incorrect insertions. The views of the contributors are not necessarily those of the publisher or the advertisers. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the copyright holder and publisher, application for which should be made to the publisher. By entering this site the user accepts a charge of £10,000 if the site is used for advertising canvassing purposes or published in any way.
Incoming Incoming….Prepare For Evacuation!
