Insidious, so close, so very close

Rating: 7/10 (10 May 2011)

Insidious is the newest film from duo James Wan (director) and Leigh Whannell (writer/actor) who were made infamous by their first film, Saw. Except this time, instead of starting a sub-genre, they're paying homage to another: the Haunted House genre, which includes films such as The Amityville Horror and House on Haunted Hill. Now as much as I like campy little tribute pictures, like Brutal Massacre or Grindhouse, I usually don't consider them great movies. The reason? As fun as it is to revisit a genre that is otherwise dead and gone, these movies don't really bring anything new to the table. That being said, Insidious was a delightful surprise.
It keeps its heart close to home with the classics, but is totally original in both its execution and plot. Now you may think you've seen this movie before - quick shots of people walking by doorways, turns out a brutal multiple-homicide took place there years before, blah blah blah - but I assure you, you're wrong. The film does have some aspects of familiarity to them, there's no denying that, but it also has a refreshing edge that most recent horror films don't have. One of these things is that Insidious EARNS its scares. Yes, it does have the quick shots of things appearing and disappearing, loud noises, and all that jazz, but it also has a shocking number of scenes that rely on build-up and legitimately creepy circumstances instead of the pop-out scares that we're all so familiar with.
Unfortunately though, Insidious isn't consistent. For every brilliant scene that is beautifully done, there are at least 3-4 that either don't make a whole lot of sense or are the cheap pop-out style scares. Also, the big reveal into what's going on in this movie was good, but it also missed the mark slightly; other scenes were carried out a bit too long and got a bit too ridiculous. One can see where they were trying to go with it, but it just didn't come out that great.
It is unfortunate that this movie wasn't better received; they came so close to being a notable force in the horror genre, which is so desperately needed right now in main stream cinema, and personally I think James and Leigh would fit the bill wonderfully because they have something that very few people don't: heart, and they've got a ton of it