Insidious (2011, James Wan)

In these trying times of theatrical horror catastrophes that are not nearly popping up as frequent as they once have, I have pretty much steered clear of visiting the cinema and have completely stopped following current films that hit the big screen. Horror on the big screen has hit it's lowest point and nothing of any interest to me, personally, has graced the silver screen in quite some time (Scream 4 and the Roommate can continue to do without my listless eyes for the rest of my life time, as far as I'm concerned)...

"Insidious" was one that I was going to pass up - having no real investment in this modern torrent of redundant ghost/haunting films that are created for mass appeal. It wasn't until I incidentally started hearing some pretty positive words on the film that I thought it may be worth seeing (considering my sources are usually accurate). With high hopes, I watched "Insidious" in a relaxingly empty theater and had my expectations irrefutably met.

A family moves into a new house and the wife/mother is greeted with a series of ghostly encounters after her young son falls victim to an unexplainable coma. Strange whispers are heard on the baby monitor, faces are seen peering through windows, and deformed intruders lurch from darkened areas. Even after they relocate residences, the terrifying phenomenons still occur. It isn't until they call in a pair of ghost-hunters along with a psychic medium that they become aware of the true reasoning behind their nightmarish situation...

Out of all the remakes of Asian ghost films that have come out over the years, "Insidious" happens to be an original concept from James Wan (Saw, Dead Silence) and is truly the most effective of it's kind in recent years. The premise (even throughout the critically despised third act) remains simple enough to hold your attention while focusing on genuinely creepy images instead of your typical, yawn inducing Nacy Drew Mystery type shit. Many different apparitions appear during the film - such as an old woman, a young boy, and a red-faced demon. This certainly makes for a chilling "ride" that keeps you wondering what the hell kind of figure is going to show itself next. The scene in which the mother sees the child dancing to "Tip Toe Thru' the Tulips" through the window of her home is oddly frightening. When it comes down to the one character passing through into "The Further" to rescue the child, things become a tad more complicated, though uniquely and unexpectedly surreal and nightmarish for this kind of film. It ends with an exciting climax and a pretty cool twist ending that left me satisfied. I'm not sure what some people's problem was with the final act - if maybe it was too "out there" and less ingrained. Frankly, I found this portion of the film extremely tense and hypnotically bizarre in an unapologetically enigmatic kinda way.

All I can think to say, in closing, is that don't be fooled by the promotional ads and quick-edited trailer. "Insidious" is a surprisingly eerie ghost flick that will surely captivate you like no film of it's kind in years! 7/10.