Insidious
(by Mike Anthony)
This movie is scary! I'm kind of desensitized to
a lot of horror/thriller movies, but this one utilizes silence, aloneness in
a house, and a SMASHING musical score of strings & screams to scare the heck
out of you.
The film is a haunted house story without the
home....turns out when the family moves from one location to another; the
events continue. When a specialist is called in (complete with a pair of
humorous "ghost trackers" with a ton of funny-gizmos and devices of their
own creation) we find the real twist. No spolier here (it's in the trailers)
but it isn't the house that is haunted, it's their son!
A young couple comprised of a stay-at-home mom
and a busy, appearance-concious dad have three kids. Their oldest and most
adventurous son "Dalton" falls in their scary attic and gets a bump in the
head. Soon the bumps in the night are worsened when the boy not only falls
asleep after his accident but doesn't wake up. While medicine struggles for
a solution to his bizarre, injury-free coma, the parents deal with the dual
stress of caring for the boy while getting the s#@t
scared out of them on a regular basis.
This movie uses music well; and does an
amazingly good job of creating dread and fear in a tranquil setting. The
terriffic scares kept me on the edge of my seat; and despite a weak third
act that starts to get a little silly the overall experience is well worth
it.
Done on a small budget; this movie delivers in a
big way. No surprise that it comes form the financial and production
team behind "Paranormal Activity", and the duo that created the original
"SAW" movie. Fans will recognize those two as director James Wan, and writer
Leigh Wannel.
After a silly third-act; the final moments do
return to some intensity; so sitting through a little lameness will pay off
in the very end.
3 good things about this movie:
-it delivers what it promises: lotsa scares!
-the acting; especially the mother-in-law played
by Barbara Hershey who seems to be locking the "mysterious mom" genre up
with this role and her spot in "Black Swan".
-the use of music; including the creepy
insertion of "Tiptoe Through The Tulips"
3 bad things about this movie:
-the last third gets silly--no other word to use
here
-the "dad-busy-at-work" thing is a bit cliche,
but does allow the mom to face the house and it's scares alone
-the gas mask, the lanterns & fog that get used
for few minutes at the end; you'll see what I mean if you go
Overall rating 3.5 cookies out of five, and
great for horror fans.
<<<chyatt