I is for...

Director James Wan made a name for himself in horror films with the release of Saw. The high concept, blood filled film was an immediate hit and spawned a number of sequels. Afterwards, Wan made a couple of films that attempted to break free from the splatter and torture. One of his more successful attempts is our entry for I.

Insidious begins like a lot of films. A young couple buy a big house and move in with their children. The wife begins looking through photo albums and realizes there are no childhood pictures of her husband. One of the children, the young boy, complains about strange things happening in his bedroom. Initially laughed off as an overactive imagination, the boy's fears suddenly become reality when he slips into a coma. The couple rush him to the hospital, with no results. The wife soon begins experiencing frightening occurrences and becomes convinced that the house is haunted. With no other options, the couple abandon the house in favor of a new suburban life. They bring their son home, though his condition has not changed. Unfortunately for them, neither have the hauntings.

After a few more terrifying encounters, the family seeks help from spiritualists. They soon discover that the husband's childhood has a connection to what is happening to their son. The only way to save the child, they are told, is for the husband to travel the astral plane to reclaim the boy's soul.

Perhaps the most mainstream film highlighted this month, Insidious nevertheless provides some solid scares. The beginning of the film is filled with a mix of jump scares and subtle terror. Ghosts hide just out of view, alarms go off for no reason. Things jump from the shadows or appear in broad daylight. The last act of the film unfortunately changes directions and loses the fright factor the film worked so hard to earn. It abandons the realistic approach in favor of highly stylized visuals that pull the audience out of the movie. In any case, the beginning is enough to justify watching Insidious. You may wanna leave the lights on, while you do so.

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