Creepy start, chaotic end

Rating: 6/10 (19 September 2019)

Insidious begins as a scary, atmospheric story of isolation, paranoia, and potential insanity and ends as an over the top monster fight. By switching progagonists halfway through from frightened mom, Renai, to traumatized dad, Josh, the film loses its focus, spiraling out of control into a convoluted mishmash of clunky exposition, eerie supernatural tableaus, campy villains, and bizarre ghost hunting tecnhiques. While many conceptual and visual elements of the film remain creepy, its generic shock based soundscape and choatic final act undermine the tension of the first part of the film.