Gore swapped for bore in Insidious
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Take a creaky old house, add a cup of shadowy lighting, a pinch of haunting violin music and throw in a mixture of creepy kids and creepy old ladies. Those are the ingredients for Insidious, the new horror/thriller from James Wan and Leigh Whannell, the Australian duo behind the hugely successful Saw franchise.
But this is less reverse bear traps and more cheap chills.
When married couple Renai (Rose Byrne) and Josh (Patrick Wilson) move into a new home with their three children, Renai begins to think there is "something wrong'' after she experiences a serious of paranormal events. They include doors opening by themselves, voices heard whispering over the baby monitor, objects moving of their own accord, creepy child laughter and shadowy figures appearing suddenly. I know, groundbreaking stuff. When their son Dalton (Ty Simpkins) suffers a serious accident and goes into a coma, the couple are forced to consider whether it's the house that's haunted or their child.
Insidious is clearly influenced by creepy child-classics within the genre such as The Exorcist, Poltergeist, Rosemary's Baby and even the more recent Spanish spine-tingler The Orphanage. The difference though, is they were actually scary. Insidious relies on cheap tricks, like an ashen-faced ghost appearing out of nowhere, that may provide plenty of jump-out-of-your-seat moments but lack the power of slow-burning suspense.
(Left: Darth Maul, the latest in horror movie villains.)
It's full of haunted house and possessed child clichés which, frankly, seem beneath Wan and Whannell who previously seemed so bent on bringing original ideas to the horror genre. The stereotypical séance scene has the most potential thanks to some clever lighting and camera work but, like the rest of the film, it quickly descends into melancholy. The situation isn't helped by Joseph Bishara's relentless score that's like Psycho on speed; heavy on the multiple violins and light on any actual impact.
If Wan and Whannell wanted to prove to fans of their previous work that horror films can be scary without the gore, they failed. Boring instead of gory, mundane instead of insane, expected instead of unexpected. By the lack lustre conclusion, it's clear the only thing sinister and menacing about Insidious is the title.
Insidious is out Thursday, May 12.
P.S. As a side note, keep your eyes peeled for the Jigsaw caricature on the black board in the classroom scene.
But what really separates it from the mediocre horror mob (besides the kick ass Aussie soundtrack) is Byrne's characterisation. The sadistic and severely insane team of Lola and her daddy will go down as iconic horror movie villains to rival the likes of Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees. Of course, they would be nothing without the talents of McLeavy and Brumpton. McLeavy's performance, in particular, is reminiscent of John Jarratt's turn as Mick Taylor in Wolf Creek. Despite limited dialogue, Samuel too is amiable as the protagonist and his pain, both physical and emotional, draws the audience behind his plight to escape the duo and seek bloody revenge.
``You don't know me, but I know you. I want to play a game. . .'' These words were spoken by deranged serial killer Jigsaw in the first Saw movie as one of his many victims tried to find a way out of his horrific trap. It is a scenario not dissimilar to what brave punters will experience when they enter the Saw maze as part of Movie World's Fright Nights running throughout October on the Gold Coast, Australia.
It's no wonder this film has been so well received by the British public, as it is a very poignant and socially relevant film that commentates on a disenfranchised youth population that exists in the country at the moment. Technically and emotionally the film is flawless, with superb performances. Harry Brown is the role Michael Caine was born to play and it feels as if his whole career has been building towards this role.
