Insidious: Chapter 3

I am going to be completely honest with you guys, I have never seen Insidious or its sequel. I saw this film today because i needed to pass some time and i couldn't be bothered to wait an extra half an hour to see San Andreas. I've heard that the others in the series are good films but i am not a huge fan of modern horror and prefer the 70s/80s vibe that we got with It Follows. Insidious Chapter 3 doesn't have that vibe, but it is still a lot better than most modern horror today and i found enjoyment out of it. I was also pleased that this film was a prequel because i had no trouble following the plot.

Going straight into it, the film follows a young girl called Quinn who is trying to reconnect to her deceased mother and visits a retired psychic. The encounter however leaves her with something else, instead of her mother trying to contact her like she first thought, something much more sinister approaches her and with the help from her father, the psychic and for some reason a couple of ghost hunters from the internet (really?!) They try to rid the evil from her. It sounds pretty basic and for the most part it is, but when it all wraps up the story between Quinn and her mother is surprisingly sentimental for a horror film and leaves quite an impact afterwards which is something i don't experience much with horror. This is a concept that an earlier horror film this year, The Woman In Black: Angel of Death, had the potential to do but ultimately failed. The way it is executed here is much better and that was really nice to see because it could have easily been another crappy modern horror prequel like Annabelle.

As for the horror itself? I can safely say it is one of the scariest horrors I've seen for a while. Like i mentioned, i'm not sure how scary the others are but this one will have anyone feeling unsettled at points and even made me jump out of my seat a few times, which was good because jump scares rarely have that effect on me. I think it worked with Insidious Chapter 3 because of the tense feel throughout and the fact that it doesn't throw one at you every couple of minutes that go by. It took a little bit of time for the movie to actually become interesting, but when it did it was enough to keep me entertained for the duration, which was all i wanted to be honest. I don't know any of the cast members from anything prior to this, but they were pretty 50/50 to me. The actresses who play Quinn and the psychic were very good whereas the father and the two ghost hunters were kinda awkward to watch. Was that enough to make this a bad movie? No, because it was not one.

all-in-all Insidious chapter 3 is an entertaining and tense film which is the right blend of jump scares and atmosphere, still not my favourite horror of the year (that goes to It Follows) but i enjoyed it more than Unfriended and The Woman in Black and liked the emotional twist it gave us. My biggest complaint is the cop-out ending. I don't know why horror films these days insist on having an ending where a mysterious figure pops up at you and screams because it doesn't look good it feels tacky and takes the atmosphere away from the film which is the number one complaint i have for Unfriended. But it didn't completely ruin the film for me and i think if i had seen the others i would understand what was happening so maybe i don't like it here for that reason. It kept me intrigued and made me want to watch the previous two, which is perfect being a prequel and all, so that is just what i will do.

The teenager Quinn Brenner (Stefanie Scott) visits the medium Elise Rainier (Lin Shaye) expecting to contact her mother Lillith (Ele Keats). Quinn explains that she tried to contact her mother alone, but Elise refuses to help her. Soon Quinn is haunted by the fiend of The Man Who Can't Breathe (Michael Reid MacKay) in her room but her skeptical father Sean Brenner (Dermot Mulroney) does not believe in her words. However, when Quinn is violently attacked by the evil spirit, Sean asks Elise to help his daughter. Elise tries, but she is attacked by the Bride In Black (Tom Fitzpatrick) that wants to kill her and she refuses to continue. The desperate Sean is convinced by his son Alex (Tate Berney) to contacts the charlatans Tucker (Angus Sampson) and Specs (Leigh Whannell) that have a blog relating their supernatural experiences while Elise meets her friend Carl (Steve Coulter) that convinces her to help Quinn. Can the teenager be saved from the possession of the evil spirit?

"Insidious: Chapter 3" is a horror film and prequel of "Insidious" that uses the same successful formula rekindled. The performances are convincing and the storyline is well written. The astral projection of Elise is scary and the viewer will certainly startle many times. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Sobrenatural: A Origem" ("Supernatural: The Origin")

In lots of ways Insidious is one of the most unlikely franchise's existing today and unlike many of its other horror franchise counterparts it really is the film series that could, for over three films now Insidious has managed to be both profitable and also most importantly highly watchable and more than a little bit creepy.

The first two Insidious tales saw Saw co-creators and Australia's unsung Hollywood hero's James Wan and Leigh Whannell deliver some otherworldly chills without resorting to OTT violence or gore splatter that has sadly been a staple of modern day horror films that think the more blood spilled the more effective the film will be and with this third entry to the franchise Leigh Whannell takes over directing duties from his now box office superstar buddy Wan which sees him do a more than admirable job.

A long time player in the modern horror scene, Whannell surely knows a thing or two about what freaks us movie goers out and where the first Insidious scared us with its white faced man and then the second got us with its red faced demon, here in the third chapter which is in fact a prequel of sorts to the events of what has transpired before, Whannell creates a figure almost as scary as Jigsaw himself with the "Man that can't breathe". A horrible and off putting creation this figure is a large part of the reason why this entry into the series keeps the chills coming and while Whannell relies on the jump scare and silent soundtrack situation quite a lot to make Insidious scary, there's little denying there's more ingenuity here than most other low budgeted horror flicks.

There's also a surprising amount of heart thrown into the mix here and while it may come off as cheesy and sap-filled, it's nice for a film of this ilk to throw some emotional resonance into an otherwise highly unrealistic scenario of possessed teens and ghost worlds.

While the dialogue can sometimes fall flat and Whannell and Angus Sampson's comical ghost hunters that played large parts in the first films still feel a little out of place, Insidious 3 is a highly watchable and often highly effective piece of horror filmmaking that never tries to outstretch its reach.

After three solid films it feels as though the makers of Insidious know exactly what their films are and what they aren't and we as an audience can be thankful for that and now can look forward to what Whannell and his team have in store for us when chapter 4 hopefully eventuates.

3 footprints out of 5

Teenager Quinn Brenner has tried to contact her late mother on her own and then she goes to see medium Elise Rainier. Elise tells her she is retired but is persuaded to help; instead of contacting Quinn's mother she senses a malevolent presence. She advises Quinn to not attempt to contact her mother again. Shortly afterwards Quinn is involved in a serious accident which requires her to have both legs set in plaster while she recovers. When she return homes see starts seeing a shadowy man wearing an oxygen mask. After a number of increasingly frightening events her father goes to Elise to get help. Things don't go too well so Quinn's brother suggests contacting Specs and Tucker, a pair of internet ghostbusters.

This film is set some time before the events of the previous films and doesn't really require any knowledge of those films. That said there are a few elements that are more fun if you have some knowledge of the characters. It adds good backstory and shows how Elise came to work with unlikely associates Specs and Tucker. The story provides plenty of scares; some are just the usual jump scares but there is also an impressively pervasive creepiness much of the time. As with the previous films it manages to eschew gore and any real nastiness. The cast is solid enough; most notably Lin Shaye who makes a welcome return as Elise. Overall I wouldn't say this was a must see but if you are a fan of the genre it is more than good enough.

I walked in with zero expectations and ended up being very pleasantly surprised. This movie was fun, well crafted and extremely entertaining. Being a big fan of the franchise (and of the genre)I was very happy with how this prequel explored the backstory of the psychic/medium and her future "helpers". The effects were great, the different ghosts/spirits/ entities were all different in their background and aspects. The plot was well developed and the jump-scares were well placed. There is no "repetition" from the previous two movies so this movie gained in originality.

You will not be disappointed.

Very fun ride!

NB: look for two thrilling cameos!!