Insidious (2010)
Supernatural horror is a bit of new ground for me. It's not that I don't like it; I absolutely adored Candyman, for instance. However, I just don't find myself gravitating to it the same way I do slashers and whatever you want to call Saw. Mystery horror? I dunno, but either way, ghosts and specters aren't my go-to.
That being said, if they're anything like Insidious, I've been missing out.
2010's Insidious is another brainchild of one of my favorite duos, James Wan and Leigh Whannell. It follows a family whose eldest son Dalton mysteriously falls into a coma. At first fearing that it's trauma brought on by a nasty fall in the attic, they quickly learn that something more sinister is in play.
One of the things about this movie that really makes it stand out to me is the direction, something that James Wan is known for. Long, held shots of seemingly empty rooms, slow crawls down hallways, and well-crafted jumpscares all show that he's mastering his craft. Even the camera movements are slick, with the film opening with one such creative move.
I also really like that, while the plot first seems like it's going to go the same way as many horror movies before it, it actually subverts much of the problems that the genre can seem mired in. For one, the protagonists never make any outwardly dumb decisions. You're not watching a couple of idiots - they react intelligently and swiftly.
It also directly throws out the idea of the dysfunctional family. A lot of movies, horror ones especially, seem adverse to the concept of a happy family. Maybe it's for the drama, and I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but in Insidious, Renai and Josh clearly are a very good couple. Renai's fears of there being some kind of entity in the house are met with belief from Josh, not dismissal. He even moves the family out of their brand new house at one point because of it.
He also reacts to evidence given to him. There's a moment where he clearly thinks that the crew sent to help the family are scam artists, and sends them on their way. However, when he looks through his son's drawings and sees that everything they said is true, he immediately accepts the truth and brings them back.
It's refreshing, honestly. The horror isn't brought about by incompetence, but by truly strong forces. I also like that, while clearly dealing with demons and spirits, the movie doesn't lean on the religious aspect that the supernatural genre usually rests on. There's a priest at one point, but the solution that's ACTUALLY gone with is almost something more like a science. This lends the film an interesting sense of aesthetic; much of it is based around technology and technique instead of vague notions of spirituality. I'm not dismissing religious-themed horror; it's just cool to see a movie go with something different.
The twists and turns of the plot are very well-executed, and I don't want to talk too much on them. Needless to say, the battle to get Dalton back is very tense, with the Lipstick-Face Demon being a fantastic visual nemesis. There's a scene late in the movie where you watch it crawl along a wall, and that imagery is insanely effective.
All in all, Insidious is a solid horror movie, and I definitely intend to watch the rest of the series some day. I've even read that Patrick Wilson himself, Josh's actor, is directing the one coming out this year. It's cool to see an actor own a character so much!
