Genres

Visitors Review

pbrowne12 2012-05-25 23:48:07

Insidious is, Insidious is, Insidious is....Amazing

A PG-13 that not only scared me but gave me hope for the horror moviegenre. I love horror movies. I'll watch anything from slasher tomonster. This one was like nothing I have ever seen. I don't want togive away spoilers i'm just letting you know whatever you think thismovies gonna be about, it's not. Beautifully shot, good acting, gooddirection, great story, scared the crap out of me and had an ending Ihave been praying for since I started watching horror films when I wasa kid. I'll be honest Paranormal activity scared me. There is someParanormal activity moments in this movie that made me jump but that'snot the whole point of the movie. Don't be thinking it is. Also itsfrom the dude that directed the first saw. There is not blood and gutsgalore either, just a well thought out crazy awesome story that willhave you leaving the theater feeling satisfied and ready to tell all ofyour friends and co workers to go out and see it.

2012-05-25 08:30:25

High blood pressure for the wrong reason.

Cant help smile and built up some interest when i saw this movie andespecially when it had a weak 7 in the scales as well.so i gave it ahonest try. The film starts up decent and at least try to build up somestory and excitement despise the stiff and rigid acting of the boysparents. Somewhat of a eerie and creepy feeling is noticeable when theare exposed to the strange sounds in the boys walkie talkie.But it doesn't develop so much from there actually,you can say as whenthe medium women appears and starts telling about the boy being astraltravel etc it just going downhill,shes pretty stereotype as well.The last 20-30 minutes the film maker expects the watcher to be pale inthe face relaying on blunt,sharp noise/music effects,amateurish madespook-faces and fast-flashes in the dark. This film borrows a greatdeal from classics like Poltergeist etc but just doesn't have the rightfeeling and craftsmanship to pull it off.

Dan Yurocko 2012-05-25 00:42:45

Imagine James Wan making poltergeist with a twist

I have to say first off, I am a fan of James Wan. That said, trying togive you an impartial review is impossible. This movie is good on so many levels. I was very impressed that a PG13 movie was as entertaining as this. I like the whole premise of the movie. Without giving anything away, aboy falls into a coma for no reason. When they find out the reason for the coma, it is interesting how theymake it work. I would definitely recommend this movie for anyone. Its just a fun movie towatch. Hats off to James Wan.

Vivekmaru45 2012-05-24 01:56:29

The Downfall Of The U.S Horror film industry...

If this is the best James Wan can do, his directorial days arenumbered. It seems Hollywood has a habit of churning out crappy horrorfilms. Make anything to earn a buck.The topic of this film isn't new at all. Astral projection. I had seen a film of this sort long ago. It was called Out Of The Body(1989). It was about a man who unknowingly goes out of his body in hissleep and kills beautiful women. Then I saw The Blue Man (1985). Thisone was about a dissatisfied Montreal director of TV commercials istaught to astrally project himself by a mysterious woman. But soon hefinds that he does it against his will when he sleeps, and while hedoes it, he commits savage acts against those in his life. Then I saw The Poltergeist Trilogy of films and The Nightmare On ElmStreet. A seasoned horror film fan. I have watched horror films going back tothe 30's. Nothing is new to me. This film is especially made for newbiehorror movie lovers who have no experience at all and for whom thisfilm is made. That's where all the cash comes from. I pity thesesuckers who spend their hard earned money on this film.Plot of film: a family of five (husband, wife, two small boys and ababy), move into a new house. Their youngest son has the habit ofastrally projecting himself during his sleep and wandering the realmsbeyond, until he gets trapped in a far-off place called "The Further".The boy's father has the same inherent ability. He has to go intohypnosis, project himself astrally and rescue his son.This was the biggest mistake made in the film. All of James Wan's filmshave terrible endings. This one is NO exception. Verdict: either watch it online for FREE. Or RENT IT CHEAP, or borrowthe DVD from a sucker who has already bought it and now plans to use itas a Frisbee.

djber1994 2012-05-23 20:06:54

A solid movie.

To be honest, I think the only people who didn't like this movie arethe stuck-up wannabe critics who like to sit in their rooms and mockeverything because it makes them feel like their opinion matters. Therewas not much to dislike about this movie. The acting was not bad, theeffects were pretty good and appealing to see, and I liked the factthat for once a recent horror film did not involve unnecessary bloodand violence. It relied on actual suspense. Parts of it were funny, aswell. The only thing that may have lacked a little was the way the plotwas put together. Parts of the story were truly obscure and almostseemed a little rushed. But, if, unlike said wannabe critics, you canuse a small amount of suspension of disbelief, and do not needEVERYTHING to make sense because you have no sense of imagination, youprobably will actually enjoy this movie. However, if your response tomovies is usually "HA! That sucked! I could pull a better movie out ofmy ass! I'm awesome!", you'll probably hate it and come write a stupidreview about it. In my opinion, one of the best put-together, directed,and acted horror movies of recent times. Not a must-see or instantclassic, but a solid watch and a fun time.

Brandon Blackwell 2012-05-23 11:03:35

"Its not the house that's haunted"

A family looks to prevent evil spirits from trapping their comatosechild in a realm called The Further.Okay, so I had really high expectations for this film and saw it weeksafter it came out into theaters. That time, I actually really liked iffor some reason. But then after viewing it again at home, I found somepiece of mind and realized it was horrible. The scares have been usedso many times and I loved how they used all these eerie thingsattempting to scare you. It might work for the little kids, but that'sbeen used far too many times. The film does succeed in some levels.Such as the plot line for instance, WRONG! Don't get me wrong, the plotline actually started to be good, actually bringing a real life thinginto the story; astral projection, which actually made it a littlescarier considering it wasn't monsters or zombies. But then later on,the film turns into this science-fiction horror story. I was reallydisappointed and I really don't see how I couldn't see it from before.I do see this being a movie for a bunch of teenagers to hang around andwatch with a big group. It'll be great for a party. Do not get me wrongagain, the horror does get good; it DOES get scary and if it kept goingthat path, it would've been a 8 or 9 for sure. 5/10.

jermaineprince747 2012-05-22 13:56:46

just horrible

I'm sad to say that i was extremely disappointed with this moviebecause honestly, it wasn't scary at all.. I watched it with mygirlfriend and throughout the movie we couldn't stop telling each otherhow much it sucked. The whole movie had the feel of an episode of"American Haunting." It felt like watching a half developed remake of"Poltergeist" "follow my voice" "come into the light Carol Ann"Granted, there are a few jumpy scenes if you're the "jumpy" type but inno way shape or form would i call this a great horror movie. Those thatfind this scary probably peed their pants watching "Scream 4" I wouldgo into detail but i don't want to spoil the "chilling" experience.smh..

joonasylitalo 2012-05-22 07:13:58

A family moves into a new home, paranormal happens

I found this movie bland in its genre.The same clichés have I seen so many times before, not that it was allbad. The plot didn't carry all the way through, but the cinematographywas, not quite the best, but it kept me captivated for the length ofthe movie.I watched this one with my girlfriend and she didn't even once seekprotection from me, so decide for yourselves. I would recommend youwatch this movie.- Joonas Ylitalops. this is just ridiculous.

Daniel Burton 2012-05-21 20:07:15

Overrated movie of the year

As a big horror fan, I was really looking forward to this movie.Watched it at the night in the cinema. So, a perfect scenario - A newhorror movie, at night , at the big screen! Well it was not what Iexpected. The first hour was quite okay, and I was looking forward tothe finale that seemed to be really good! But the last 30 minutes..Seriously? It was just a major letdown! Maybe it was because myexpectations was skyhigh, but it doesn't matter, either way I cant justignore the fact that it was just plain bad. My friend beside me saidafter an hour that the movie became more and more complex and justabsurd. The plot was just too overkill, and the movie did not live upto anything at all. It was not entirely bad, but compare this toParanormal Activity which I found great is just pathetic! Insidious hadone scene in the entire movie that was a bit scary, but since i'vealready seen it in the official trailer.. Yeah you get it. The monsterin the film was pathetic, it looked like a five-year old put ittogether in paint. Is that the best you can do with all your computersin 2011? I've seen better looking film-monsters 1970. As a summary: 1. Not too bad acting, but the storyline just fades away and becomesmore and more absurd. 2. Smocked with b-horror movie clichés, like hands in drawers, clowns,ugly monsters you name it.3. Worth watching if you're really bored, but I don't recommend it! :)5/10 . Expected a lot more.

Bolly_Boba_Booboo 2012-05-21 11:57:09

violent cult masterpiece

Truly awful! Incoherent story line, grainy unimaginative cinematoraphy,thunerstorm loop for a sound track, extremely poor acting - in generalno redeeming reasons to torture yourself by viewing. That is unlessyou're into guys in their underwear writhing in bed while rubbing theirchests (?) The blooper reel, however, was half interesting since itshowed how awful the actors really were. Although the movie is put outby "Cult Films", it has no hope of attaining a cult film status. Rentanything else...Much worse than I thought it would be, and that was pretty bad. Theonly reason I gave it 2 stars was the boys were extra fine, but thescript needed much help, it was a disaster. Mr. Wan, you let me down onthis one. I am a big supporter, but this one failed miserably. 2 stars,don't waste your time unless you like to see straight boys in theirshorts, bad one

yeaimdaman73 2012-05-20 20:15:47

A Steady Train That Goes Along Fine Then Derails Off Into Disaster

This is on of those films that starts off really good by adding acreepy sense into the film - as well as giving reason to feel for thevictims - into a nonsensical, over the top mess.This film starts off by building the suspense of something trulyfrightening haunting this family (Which does a very good job). Youstart to wonder how they are going to really hit the climax of thefilm. Then, it starts to turn into an over the top rip off ofPoltergeist and Exorcist. Everything that made the film actually creepyand disturbing turned it into a three ring circus that killed anymomentum made for the victims to be in danger as well as its creeptone.It's disappointing because this film looked as if it wasn't going toneed hokiness as well as things popping out of nowhere to really getthe viewer interested in watching, but the second half of the filmnegates that and over does it ten fold.Overall - Very disappointing. Want a true scare? Watch The Blair WitchProject.

John DeSando 2012-05-20 05:49:19

Would have been better as a comedy.

Astral projection (out of body experience) is the real heart of thepaint-by-numbers horror sideshow Insidious. A family keeps moving fromhaunted houses until it realizes the demon is in their child, not thehouses, and the other demons want him. Saw's James Wan directs thissometimes amusing hodgepodge without Saw's bloody business or a modicumof innovation. At least it has the guts to avoid overdoing the CGI.The demons, who seek the body of young Dalton Lambert (Ty Simpkins)because he astral projects and leaves it frequently, are the motliestcrew I have ever seen, from desiccated brides to downright devils withtails, a posse of poltergeist fiends not quite as alarming as theymight be in Dawn of the Dead or Shaun of the Dead, for that matter.The haunted house evokes images of The Haunting, and just as cheesy asthat film is this one. Even The Exorcist's darkly painted violence ishere with a priest in tow. Insidious never comes close to the fear Ifelt in The Descent or the interesting layering of characters in 28Days Later, but it has its scary moments and even humor.Yes, the nerdy fixers are funny, the technicians that is, who use avariety of outdated machines to film and capture the dead seeking thebodies of the living.Insidious would have worked as a comedy.

2012-05-19 20:14:10

Scariest movie I've ever seen!!!! And I don't scare easily!!

Ok, so I don't scare easily at all. Even my tough guy friends scare easier than I do. I've been waiting for a movie that would scare me so much, that everytime I thought of it, I'd have trouble sleeping. I've seen so many scary movies, most of them being R (cause most "scary" PG-13 movies aren't scary, this movie being the exception). I wanted to cry at some parts of the movie, but I didn't since I don't cry easy either. Everytime I think of this movie when I'm going to bed, I get so scared. All of my friends, guys and girls, who had seen this, were so scared from it too, and have trouble sleeping from it, too.So, if you love being scared like I do, this is a must see/get movie. If you get scared easily, beware because it may scar you for life.I LOVED THIS MOVIE!!Spoiler alert.... kinda.... not really though...The ending is the scariest part, so if you do watch this, but want to look away at the scary parts (like some of my friends do) look away at the end.

kevin_crighton 2012-05-19 08:00:20

Excellent Chiller.

When their young son is injured in a fall, mysterious and terrifyingevents start to happen to a young family...Horror films, especially recent films from America have become obsessedwith violence and gore. The so-called 'torture-porn' horror. There isalso an obsession with remaking or 're-booting' films to try and makemoney from the horror film franchises, like the recent Nightmare On ElmStreet. However, what Insidious proves, is that by writing somethingclever and serious, you can make a new and scary horror film.The key to the success of Insidious is that on the whole the cast playit straight. The cast led by Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne are allgood. It helps that the script, written by Leigh Whannell, while intruth not the most original, taking elements from films such asPoltergeist, it does enough with these elements to work on it's onlevel. It also helps having James Wan directing. Although still bestknown for making the first (and best) Saw film, he has made someinteresting films since, Death Sentence being one, and Dead Silencewhich has a similar feel to Insidious.While Wan may not be a high profile director, he does an excellent jobhere. He creates an atmosphere of tension throughout, including someexcellent scares in daylight, a rare feat indeed! And while he does usethe 'jump' scare technique, it works very well. Even at the climax ofthe film, which is a little predictable, he stages a chilling ending.There are faults. The ending does go a bit overboard, loosening thetension created up till that point, and a couple of paranormalinvestigators bring some unwanted comic relief.But these are minor issues. Whannell and Wan have created a trulyunsettling horror film, and one that pretty much succeeds on everylevel. It takes a lot to scare me when I go see a film. The only onesthat can, are those that create the right atmosphere. Most films don'tmanage that. This does easily. And it did scare me.This is easily one of the best recent horror films I've seen and I'drecommend it to anyone who enjoys being scared.

Chris Smith 2012-05-18 22:53:23

The Best Horror Movie of 2011!

Insidious is the new horror movie from James Wan and Leigh Whannell whobrought us the original "Saw" movie and the 2007 movie "Dead Silence"which was also reviewed on this blog. Insidious is the best scary movieof 2011 so far. It is not gory and bloody like "Saw" but returns to thebasics how to really scare you in a deep and authentic way, with outresorting to cheap violence.Insidious is a story that that crosses two popular horror sub genres;the haunted house and demonic possession. With this film director JamesWan has created some of the creepiest and nightmare inducing images tobe seen in a long time. Along with the musical score by Joseph Bishara(who also acts as the main villain) they have created a trulyfrightening film.The Lambert family has just moved into you typical dark and forebodingnew house. The doors creak, the attic is cold and dark, and things justdon't feel right as the family of five starts settling in. When Dalton,the younger of the two boys, has a mishap while exploring the attic heseems fine but doesn't wake up the next morning. After a trip to theemergency room, he checks out to be perfectly healthy but in a sort ofcoma. Over the next few days the mother, played by Rose Byrne, isfreaked out by the strange things going on inside the house (think"Poltergeist"). When she is attacked by a ghost, she begs her husbandJosh (Patrick Wilson) to move. They do, to smaller and happier lookingplace. But the ghosts and spirits seem to have followed them. They havea paranormal team investigate and find out that "The house is nothaunted, it's your son". This plot twist and how the rest of the movieunfolds has alienated some viewers, but if you've come this far, youmight as well strap in and enjoy the ride.Dalton is stuck in and other worldly dimension called the "further", asort of purgatory for demons and lost souls. Lin Shaye plays Elise aparanormal medium who seeks to bring back Dalton to his earthly bodybefore it is taken over. The premise is no doubt out there, but thefilmmakers know this and really go for it. There are not cheap scaresin this movie, no cats jumping out of the dark, no flocks of birdshiding in the shadows. They've created a roster of truly frighteningbaddies in the Old Woman, the Lipstick-Face demon, and the Doll Facegirls. What's more amazing is that this film was made for only one anda half million dollars and grossed over 58 million in theaters.The movie was also produced by the "Paranormal Activity" people, but"Insidious" actually delivers on the scares. Insidious is now availableon DVD, Blu Ray, On Demand, Red Box, and probably more. So see ittoday!

2012-05-18 02:18:13

WAY too much HYPE!

I'll probably get rated badly for this review. But before you give me that bad rating, please read the rest of my review. I went into this movie with sky high expectations. I know it isn't fair, but I kept hearing from people that the movie was terrifying. People couldn't sleep after, people were getting sick to their stomach, and others were saying it was the best movie to come out in years. The movie started off pretty decently, some of the acting was a little off, but I was willing to overlook it for the ghost aspect. The movie quickly goes downhill sadly. One ghost dances around looking like a Leprechaun, and it was hilarious. The "demon" looks like Darth Maul on crack, and the other spirits just are not scary. On top of this it was very predictable when and where the ghosts would show up. To have a good ghost movie you can't do that. Once the movie is explained to really mainly be about astral projection, demons and other dimensions I got really bummed out. But I was hoping the movie could be saved. Sadly it couldn't. It got a LOT worse from there on out. The movie was just completely silly, especially when the old lady puts on a gas mask to communicate with the child...For a more in depth review on this movie and other horror movies and horror books visit my profile for a link to my website.

Foodian 2012-05-18 00:33:58

Best Horror Movie in 10 Years!

The movie was definatley worth the $10. I must admit when my 19 year old sister dragged me to the midnight showing of this movies I was not enthused. I watched the preview before going to see it to give me an idea of the story line. I was expecting The Orphan meets Damien? Hardly. The movie was a modern day Poltergist only better. The beginning was a little slow but the storyline, effects, and level of scray goes from okay to Awesome as the the movie progresses. Take it from me, The Ultimate Synic, this movie is worth it.

ferbs54 2012-05-17 13:07:41

To Sleep...Perchance To Travel....

With a production budget of a mere $1.5 million and a worldwide grossat the box office of over $92 million, "Insidious," an independenthorror picture, was, famously and surprisingly, the most profitablefilm of 2011. Written and directed by the same team that created 2004's"Saw" (another hugely popular horror film)--screenwriter Leigh Whannelland director James Wan--the picture is undeniably creepy and shouldmanage to please most genre fans. In it, we meet Renai and Josh Lambert(Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson, both excellent here). The parents oftwo young sons and a baby daughter, and having just moved into a newluxury home, their lives are upended when their oldest boy, Dalton,slips into a three-month-long coma, and bizarre manifestations startoccurring in their house. Convinced that their abode is haunted, theLamberts move to a new domicile, which, appallingly, only makes mattersworse! Fortunately, Josh's mother (nice to see Barbara Hershey, stilllooking mighty fine, on screen again!) is able to put them in touchwith a trio of (what the general population might call) "ghostbusters," leading to a battle royale against the clamoring,otherdimensional demons who are attempting to claim Dalton for theirown....In a film with countless chilling moments (and the less said aboutthem, the better, I suppose, for prospective viewers), several standout: those photographs, for example, and those supercreepy voices heardover the baby monitor (I'm getting a little prickly just thinking aboutthem!). Head "ghost buster" Elise Rainier (well played by Lin Shaye)almost steals the show with her alternately gentle and steely ways, andher two assistants, Specs and Tucker (played by Whannell himself andAngus Sampson), provide what little humor and lightheartedness the filmhas to offer. Wan, still early in his career, demonstrates that he isalready a pro at generating chills and suspense (especially in thefilm's masterful first third), while Joseph Bishara'sdiscordant/screechy soundtrack is as freaky as they come. "Insidious,"it might also be added, makes the best use of a Tiny Tim song (in thiscase, his late '60s classic "Tiptoe Through the Tulips") since...well,I suppose since Tim sang "There'll Always Be an England" for the Isleof Wight crowd in the "Message to Love" documentary. Indeed, I findthat I only have one quibble with this truly unnerving film, which Isincerely regret not having watched on the big screen; namely, many ofthe scenes--especially toward the end, as Josh explores the"Further"--are woefully underlit. While I'm sure this wasn't an issuein theaters, on a normal television screen, many of the fine and subtledetails of this otherdimensional zone might be lost. Still, the filmmanages to work, even at home. It is assuredly a powerful picture,right to its stunning twist ending, and does have a cumulativelychilling effect. The film turns out to be well named; insidiously, youmay find yourself being creeped out before you even know it....

Wendye 2012-05-16 23:11:32

Started off Awesome, ended up silly

The first 15 minutes were boring and slow, the lead in was really ho-hum and then it starts to get awesome. A couple really good scare-thrills, got our hearts really pounding!! As it wore on though, it turned to silliness and groan-worthy. I'm easily and delightedly scared but this movie really disappointed me in the end.

brando647 2012-05-16 10:28:19

An Excellent, Eerie Ghost Tale

I'm always impressed when a studio manages to create an entertaininghorror/thriller film with a PG-13 rating. The lower rating means thefilm won't be relying on gore effects to rattle the audience, insteadrelying on atmosphere, creepy music, and hauntings rather thaneviscerations. It's odd to think this movie comes from James Wan, thedirector responsible for the original SAW (the film that jump-startedthe world's love for torture porn). The film focuses on the Lambertfamily; Josh (Patrick Wilson) and his wife Renai (Rose Byrne) move intoa new home with their three children and mysterious occurrences beginalmost immediately. Exploring the attic, their son Dalton falls from aladder and, while he appears fine at first, he soon falls into aninexplicable coma. As her son lies comatose, Renai begins to experienceinstances of garbled voices over the baby monitor and visions of peoplein the house. Despite her husband's skepticism, Renai is sure somethingsupernatural is involved. She finds help in Elise Ranier (Lin Shaye), amedium assisted by two socially-inept paranormal investigators, whodelivers some grave news to Josh and Renai: it's not the house that'shaunted, it's their son.I love a good haunting film (especially the adaptation of StephenKing's 1408). Ghosts and poltergeists are much creepier than maskedpsychos, in my opinion. INSIDIOUS doesn't bring anything new to thegenre and borrows a lot of the same clichés, but at least thefilmmakers try to do it with their own style. There is the usual séancescene, but to up the creep-factor Elise wears an old gas mask andshares the experience by muttering into the headphones of her associateSpecs, who transcribes the conversation and passes it on to theconfused family. I've read a lot of posts and seen a lot of web reviewsof people who seem pretty terrified of this movie. I'm sure theirexaggerating a bit as there's nothing really to scream about, but themovie does a great job of keeping the chills consistent. In what waspersonally the eeriest sequence in the film, Renai is cleaning her newhome listening to some music on an old record player. She steps outtake out the trash and the record player crackles, switching to thewarbling sound of "Tiptoe Through the Tulips". Then, through a window,we see a young boy dressed straight out of the '20s dancing a littlejig. By the time Renai rushes back inside, everything's back to normal.Little weird bits like that keep you on edge throughout the film (youknow, unless you've been desensitized to normal spooks).I loved how the film touched on astral projection. Rather than runningthe same route as POLTERGEIST and other ghost films, it touches on asupernatural element we never really see in movies. The ghostspopulating the other world, the "Further" as Elise calls it, weregreat. The cast does an awesome job here, everyone filling out theusual roles we find in these sorts of movies: the tormented wife, theskeptical husband, the strange medium, etc. I thought the paranormalinvestigators (played by Angus Sampson and screenwriter Leigh Whannell)were fun as the comic relief in the later parts of the film wherethings are starting to get serious. Overall, it's a really well-doneghost story with very little detracting from it. I did think it took abit long to get into the story. It's a pretty slow build-up as thefamily is introduced before we get into the meat of it all. I was alsosort of put off by the ending (though I'll avoid details here). Itwould've been fine if it had tied up all the loose ends, but leaving itopen for a sequel means there's a chance for more films to milk apotential franchise when I'd much rather have a real good one-offthriller.