Good But Not Great

Rating: 7/10 (14 September 2013)

From Director James Wan comes a sequel to Insidious that on the surface could have been something just as good as the first film but falls short. I went into the theater expecting a film on par or better than part one of Insidious however I left feeling empty in that regard. However after taking time to think about the film while it is not as good as part one it is still a good film and better than most horror films that are released today.
James Wan is without a doubt my favorite horror genre director today. He brought us Saw, Insidious part one, lesser known films but still great such as Dead Silence and Death Sentence, as well as The Conjuring which was released just under two months ago. He knows how to make a great film. With each new film he makes we get to see why he is such a great director. But this film is missing something. Surprisingly this is his first sequel that he ever directed. He has only written sequels in the past. And I would have to say this is his worst written sequel to date. Leigh Whannell also wrote this film and again this outing has to be his least interesting outing to date. But Whannell in my opinion just like Wan is the best at what he does in the horror genre today and that is write.
The writing from writer Leigh Whannell and James Wan overall is not awful it is just not as good as previous works by these two men. Sequels aren't as easy to make and these two strive to make quality films all the time. However this film tries too hard and the outcome is not that good.
The music in this film is amazing and it just feels like a classic horror film where you remember the music for ages. Wan and Whannell brought us Saw and that film has one of the all time classic scores ever. I wouldn't call the score in Insidious classic just yet but it is indeed memorable.
The acting with the cast similar to part one is overall very good. Patrick Wilson pulls off some amazing work in this film. My only complaint in this department is Rose Byrne who doesn't seem she can act her way out of a paper bag let alone big screen movies.
Overall this film is a step down from Insidious part one but still one of the better overall horror films considering the trashed that is released nowadays. If you are a fan of the first film don't set high expectations for the film and you will leave the theater enjoying this movie. Final rating 6.5/10