Surprisingly Really Good

Rating: 8/10 (29 May 2012)

This film was much better than I expected. These days it's really hard to make something original and actually scary. Too many horror movies(or movies in general) copy heavily from previous movies and rely too much on special effects to carry the movie. Insidious is the exact opposite.
Insidious relies on a really good storyline, old school scare tactics, and a great set of cast members to carry the movie. Basically, the story revolves around a young couple and their 3 children that move into a new house only to start seeing strange, paranormal things going on. One of their sons, Dalton (Ty Simpkins) falls into a deep comma for no apparent reason and doctors can't explain why. Dalton is eventually moved back home still in the comma but paranormal incidents still continue to occur, but at an increasing, dangerous pace. Dalton's mother Renai (Rose Byrne) senses the evil presence in the house more than anyone else. She then convinces her husband, Josh (Patrick Wilson) to move out.
But the strange paranormal activity only follows the family to their new home. The couple then enlists the help of Elise Rainier (Lin Shaye), a modern day ghost-buster of sorts, to help them rid the house of the paranormal activity. Along the way though we witness a couple of plot twists that are for the most part nicely done and effective.
Let me just say, Lin Shaye is not a well-known actress but she shines as Elise Rainier and helps set the pace for the climax of the film.
In today's terms, the movie had a really, really meager budget - a paltry $1.5 million. So, it's no wonder there's a big lack of special effects that most modern horror films rely on. But don't be too disappointed. This is one scary movie (think Poltergeist). Director James Won does a terrific job of creating fear with some really creepy moments throughout the movie. A malevolent voice shouting from your baby's monitoring system, only to see no one there when you get to the room; a shadowy dark figure with claw-like hands standing in the corner of your son's dark quiet room; or how about an evil entity cursing your very existence while your assistance scribbles down his every word in a wild, possessed-like manner. Scary stuff.
The only draw back to the film is once the action speeds up and the plot twists start coming into play, it sometimes comes off as "far-fetched" and some elements toward the end are unnecessary. However, overall the movie is great and the ending is to die for, literally.
Check this movie out, it's a must see!