Recently, the Insidious and Conjuring scream king Patrick Wilson got the chance to sit in the director’s chair to direct the latest and potentially final Insidious film for the big screen, Insidious: The Red Door. As I wrote in that review, this series is the “lower-budgeted and less revered film series sibling” to The Conjuring, but it has a passionate fan base that always makes these films successful in movie theaters around the world. I quite liked Wilson’s film, but how does it compare to the other films in the franchise? Well, let’s have a look.
#5 — Insidious: The Last Key — 2018
The second Insidious prequel but the first Insidious film that I reviewed, The Last Key is not without its moments. Lin Shaye is what holds this film together, but she isn’t enough. The personal angle is certainly fascinating, but the execution of the central creature left something to be desired. There simply isn’t enough here for this to be all that rewatchable. To me, this is easily the blandest of these films. That said, die-hard fans of these will have a lot of fun with the returning characters who do provide some entertainment.
#4 — Insidious: Chapter 2 — 2013
I rewatched this recently, and, honestly, it’s not as solid as I had remembered it being. I’ve read that Wan wanted this to be less of a haunted house flick and more of a domestic disturbance thriller. You can tell. The Shining-inspired Lambert family freakout just isn’t very interesting. You can also definitely tell that there has been a slight upping of the production budget here when compared to the first film. It’s apparent almost immediately. It just looks much more professional in the prologue. It’s strange that they decided to have Lin Shaye’s voice over the voice of the younger actress who was hired to play her in the 1980s. It’s certainly a choice, and it probably speaks to the filmmaker not trusting the audience to make the connection immediately that they’re the same person. That said, I do like the idea of the prologue, as it seeks to expand on the little details mentioned in the first film (though there is maybe too much of that in this one).
On the whole, I don’t think it is as scary or unsettling as the first one. Frankly, I think parts of it are often relatively dull. Honestly, I found myself thinking of ways to make unsuccessful scares better (like the scene with young Lorraine riding in the elevator alongside the ghost of a patient only for someone to explain to her that he is dead. I mean, it’s obvious that he’s a ghost. It would’ve been more effective if we had seen her checking his chart and seeing her direct reaction to that revelation right as someone walks behind her). Also, the non-chronological ideas that this film toys with didn’t work as well for me on this rewatch as it had previously.
#3 — Insidious: Chapter 3 — 2015
When I rewatched it recently, I had honestly forgotten that this — like The Last Key — was a prequel and not just a spin-off with a ‘3’ added to the title (seriously, I can’t be the only one who is really annoyed that the so-called third chapter takes place prior to the first two films). Honestly, as I sat down to rewatch this one I could barely remember it. It definitely didn’t leave much of an impression on me the first time around. But, umm, for most of this, I was seriously thinking that this was ‘good, actually.’ After the first two films, this one feels fresher and different. Leigh Whannell, in his feature directorial debut, does a lot of really confident work here in slowly ratcheting up the tension, playing with our anticipation, as well as exercising a lot of patience in the first twenty-to-thirty minutes.
Sure, there are still insanely loud jump-scare noises, and this isn’t exactly super original (I caught myself thinking that there were moments or character details that felt a little bit similar to Rob Savage’s The Boogeyman from this year). But I think this one works really well as a change of pace for this series, and it showcases some of Whannell’s talents quite well. However, I know that I mentioned the ‘Chapter 3′ titling bothers me. But, honestly, I should specify that its biggest problem, in my mind, isn’t that it isn’t a proper continuation of the first two film’s story but rather that the attempts to further explain those films’ mythology get in the way of this different — albeit admittedly not all that original — story.
This film is at its best when it isn’t talking about the Lamberts or dancing around the fact that everyone who’s seen the first two films knows that Shaye’s character dies in the first one (and therefore those scenes about her fears don’t land all that well here). Nevertheless, this most recent rewatch definitely solidified it as my favorite Insidious sequel prior to the new one. And I hadn’t expected that when I first sat down to rewatch it. That said, that eye-rollingly annoying jump-scare in the final scene honestly pissed me off. Not only is that moment a cheap reference to the first film, but it also doesn’t really make sense in the grand scheme of things, right?
#2 — Insidious: The Red Door — 2023
That’s right, the most recent sequel also happens to be the second-best in the series. At least, you know, if you ask me. If you have yet to read my review of Patrick Wilson’s feature directorial debut, then please do check it out. This one got back to what instantly hooked people to this franchise — the Lambert family and their unfortunate connection to the supernatural. This is a strong follow-up to the very end of Chapter 2 that also manages to work as a horror film about repressed trauma and complex father-son-dynamics. Wilson is unsurprisingly terrific here as a man trying to figure out what is broken inside of him. Ty Simpkins’ return as Dalton is a welcome one, as he, alongside an effective Sinclair Daniel, takes this horror franchise to college.
I will admit that there is some unrealized potential here. Some people will naturally be disappointed by the fact that in spite of its title, we only momentarily see what is behind the red door. It feels like the third act was seriously curtailed for whatever reason. That said, I greatly enjoyed this one for how it managed to tie a bow on the series in a way that gets to the heart of what made this franchise work in the first place.
#1 — Insidious — 2010
Does it get better than the original? Not in this case, I don’t think so. You’re not surprised, right? I’ve seen this quite a few times now. This is a creepy and profoundly unsettling modern low-budget Poltergeist homage. I do think that it definitely looks its budget in certain parts. Still, the visuals add to the atmosphere and effectiveness of the scares. The final third ‘astral projection’ stuff is something you either go with or don’t, but I’ve always thought it was a neat inclusion, and, odds are, if you’re interested in an article such as this one, then you do too. I do think the film is somewhat over-reliant on annoyingly loud and startling jump scares, but, on the other hand, this film has some of the most memorable jump scares of the last few decades (such as the demon behind Patrick Wilson when he’s sitting by the dinner table, or the scary ghost lady controlling Patrick Wilson there at the end), and that one music track (“Tiptoe Through the Tulips,”) was also just instantly iconic for modern horror.
There is a reason why the subsequent sequels and prequels always insist on finding a way to point back to the events and iconography of this film. Rising star horror filmmakers James Wan and Leigh Whannell kickstarted something really special with this one. Unforgettable effective horror imagery and catchy classic music forever turned spine-tingling, as well as strong performances from Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne, helped to elevate this into a genuine horror franchise.
– Article Written by Jeffrey Rex Bertelsen.
I'm Jeffrey Rex 