Insidious

Home is where the heart is. Most of us would agree, but for the Lambert family, home has become a base for absolute terror. Looking for a fresh start, Renai and Josh Lambert (Patrick Wilson) move into their new home with their three children. It doesn’t take long for things to take a turn for the worst. After their son, Dalton, mysteriously succumbs to a pseudo-coma, in which he remains unconscious for months with no explanation, the family is suddenly bombarded with supernatural contact.

It starts out pretty standard. A few books that had been carefully placed on a bookshelf are seen scattered on the floor. A box of mom’s sheet music is missing after the move to the new house; typical criteria for any ghost story. It wasn’t until the voices were heard, and apparitions were seen that it became apparent that Insidious was more than just another ghost story. The creators used innovative means of producing shock and horror among viewers and did not surrender to the tendency of resorting to cheap scares like many other horror films.

Although the beginning of Insidious feels like a completely different movie than what viewers enter into, it still makes for a very entertaining and frightening movie. It is quick to develop characters and bring viewers that classic sense of supernatural activity. The plot could have used more explanation and there is much that is left for interpretation on behalf of the audience; a solid resolution left me with a feeling of completeness and having come full circle. The soundtrack was a little much at times. I can only interpret the intensity of the orchestra as the creators’ lack of confidence in the substance of their potential scares. Sometimes it was the orchestra that scared me, when the real matter would have more than sufficed.

The advances in horror and drama etiquette that were used compliment the classic portrayal of the supernatural with flare. Caricature-like apparitions fit seamlessly into the more demonic representation in a way that demonstrates both sides of the supernatural spectrum.

Insidious is more than another horror movie. Creators have put themselves out there in the substance of this film in a way that is entertaining and terrifying. Despite having watched the film through the cracks between my fingers, each sight and sound still summoned that familiar lump of fear in my throat. I recommend this movie for those that enjoy being thrilled. It is a film for those that are familiar with and fond of the horror genre. Plan ahead to take a significant other for squeezing before buying your tickets and enjoy this original piece of horror.

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