Don’t we all enjoy a good horror movie? More than that, don’t we all just love a good horror franchise? No? Well, for many of us, one solid horror movie can be just as a good as an entire franchise, but sometimes we want more. In 2010, we were given the first movie in a new franchise, Insidious, and it was a mild success, though it has gained more favour in the years since, which is clear to see, as it did indeed spawn the franchise. From the mind of writer Leigh Whannell (Saw, The Invisible Man) and initially directed by noted horror filmmaker and frequent Whannell collaborator James Wan (Saw, The Conjuring), we are taken on a journey through multiple decades with multiple characters who all have something in common, that being the ability (for some) to astral project into another dimension known as the Further, in which live a multitude of restless spirits and malevolent beings. All the hallmarks of a good horror franchise, right? Well, let’s see…

Insidious (2010)
Director: James Wan
4/5

The inaugural film into the franchise, Insidious works extremely well as a standalone movie, giving us horror fans plenty to enjoy. Husband and wife Josh (Patrick Wilson) and Renai Lambert (Rose Byrne) move into a new house, and after having a small accident, their son Dalton (Ty Simpkins) falls into an inexplicable coma. As strange things begin to occur in the house, the Lamberts realise the coma had nothing to do with Dalton’s accident, but instead his spirit is being kept in an out-of-body place known as the Further, and they must find a way to retrieve him, enlisting the help of psychic Elise Rainier (Lin Shaye). The building of suspense and rising tension is done remarkably well, and it isn’t oversaturated with gaudy jump scares or out-of-place scoring. Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson give us everything we need to believe in the story and the characters, and Lin Shaye gives us everything we need to believe in the unbelievable. The plot is strong, the story is sensible and the demonic entities are indeed terrifying. An excellent start to the franchise.

Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)
Director: James Wan
3/5

The second entry, while good in its own way, isn’t quite as freaky-deaky as its elder sibling. After rescuing Dalton from the Further, things are still not quite right for the Lamberts, and they must once again seek help in order to rid their family of the hauntings for good. This film tells more about the origins of and why the Lamberts are being targeted by the evil spirits, and it relies less on the horror and more on the continuation of the overarching story. It’s still relatively creepy, and the story continues to stand strong, it just doesn’t quite have the same scare-kick as the first movie. It is also missing the first movie’s terrifying main antagonist, which is a bit of a disappointment.

Insidious: Chapter 3 (2015)
Director: Leigh Whannell
2/5

As is often typical of an ongoing franchise, there comes a point where the quality really dips. The third chapter is a prequel of sorts, going back just a few years before Elise helps out the Lamberts. Teenager Quinn Brenner (Stefanie Scott) seeks Elise’s help in contacting her recently deceased mother. Elise initially refuses, citing that she doesn’t tamper with the paranormal anymore, but after some unsavoury things begin to happy to Quinn, her father Sean (Dermot Mulroney) contacts Elise, and she decides to help them. She is also joined by the two “demon hunters” we have already been introduced to in chapters one and two, Specs (Leigh Whannell) and Tucker (Angus Sampson). One of the most grating aspects of this film is the way Elise is constantly going back and forth on her decision to help. Perhaps if more emphasis was placed on her reasoning for not wanting to help, her internal struggle could have been better understood and empathised with by the audience. There’s also a lack of “fear factor” in this movie. Considering all the screenplays thus far had been written by the original creator, Leigh Whannell, it was surprising that this one felt much weaker. The only redeeming factors are having Elise much more at the forefront (as one of the most interesting characters of the franchise), and the coming together of Elise, Specs and Tucker as a team. It’s an important entry to watch in order to get more background on Elise, but that’s its only real function within the franchise.

Insidious: The Last Key (Chapter 4) (2018)
Director: Adam Robitel
3/5

This fourth instalment breathes a little more life back into the franchise. The plot follows more of Elise’s life, from her beginnings as a child, with a loving mother and abusive father in the 1950s, up until her involvement with the Lamberts in 2010. It plays around a lot more with the idea of possession and the very real claims that criminals have when they profess that they were “told to do it” by something otherworldly. Some of the horrors are just so because of how the story toes the line of realism, particularly where children are involved, and so it lands on a new plain of shock for the series. A lot of things from the previous instalments are tied together, and if there is one thing this whole franchise has gotten right so far, its ensuring there is a tight plotline running through the whole thing, where everything is well explained and not held together with loose ideas or forced events that don’t make sense. There’s also a little more body horror in this film, which goes a long way to bringing back the scare tactics and fear factor that we want from these movies.

Insidious: The Red Door (Chapter 5) (2023)
Director: Patrick Wilson
3/5

Was there really a need to go back to the Lamberts, after everything was seemingly tied up nicely? Probably not, but it is a good way to bookend the franchise (assuming there are to be no more entires after this one). Nine years after the events the Lamberts last encountered, much has changed in their lives, and a lot of that stems from what happened to them. Dalton is about to start university, and his relationship with Josh is fractured, to say the least. When they both start experiencing strange things again, they both have to figure out a way to trust each other again to end it, once and for all. Patrick Wilson not only stars in The Red Door, but he also directs it in his directorial debut. He does a perfectly fine job, but there’s nothing particularly new about the film. Cinematically, there is some great framing with the art that is featured in the film, and the themes and motifs (in this case of light and dark) are well-done and not as in-your-face as a first-time director might normally unintentionally do, so it does have some redeeming qualities, even if the story feels rather forced (as do some of the performances, to be honest). It’s worth sticking around through the end credits too, to hear Ghost’s rendition of Shakspears Sister’s Stay featuring Patrick Wilson (if you don’t know about PW’s musical roots, do Google it, he is extremely talented, as perhaps any Broadway/Phantom of the Opera [2004] fan might know).

The Insidious films certainly follow the typical route of a horror franchise, in that they don’t really get as good as their initial beginnings, but we do get to learn more as some of the movies move away from being mostly “scary” and more “creepy” and full of exposition. In a way it’s a shame, because there were a lot of other potential stories that could have come from the first chapter or two, such as a focus on the main demonic red-faced figure known as Lipstick-Face (the red guy in the picture above). Personally I would love to know more about where he came from and what he wants, maybe see him lurking on other families. Following Elise’s story and building her character was a great idea, as she tends to be the glue that holds all the films together. There’s not really a need to go any further with this story, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see a “reboot” of some kind in the next five to ten years.