“Insidious: Chapter 3” scares, Lin Shaye shines
With a change in the director’s chair, the “Insidious” franchise keeps the scares coming with a mostly satisfying third chapter.
After two wildly successful horror movies in “Insidious” and “Insidious: Chapter 2,” one would think that there would be nothing left in the franchise’s tank. Horror threequels are almost never good, in fact I cannot even think of one that I enjoyed. Throw in a change in director, an almost entirely new cast and the fact that it is a prequel and it would be understandable to just write this off as a cash grab.
Lucky for fans, first time director, Leigh Whannell, proves that he knows how to keep the scares coming to deliver an entertaining horror threequel. Whannell is the series co-creator and has written the screenplay for all three movies which means he knows “Insidious” more than anyone else. He proves his knowledge and love for the series by delivering many of the same type of scares that were effective in the first two chapters, which should please any fan.
“Chapter 3” takes place before the events of the first two chapters and serves as mostly an Elise (Detroit’s own Lin Shaye) character story. When a teenage girl (Stefanie Scott) is targeted by a dangerous supernatural entity, Elise reluctantly agrees to help her and her family get rid of the demon (who is by far the most terrifying demon so far in the franchise).
Although there are a number of ties to the first two that many fans will no doubt recognize, this new chapter stands almost completely on its own which is both a good and bad thing. It is good because “Chapter 2,” although a decent horror movie, suffered from trying a little too hard to tie into the original instead of being its own film. The bad side of it is at the end of the day it feels slightly unnecessary and adds very little to the franchise.
I personally believe that the first “Inisdious” is the best horror movie of the past decade and a large part has to do with the direction of James Wan. Wan was able to create haunting imagery and set up his horror beats so well that it hid the somewhat cliché story. I have seen that movie multiple times and I catch something new every time because of Wan’s style.
Knowing that he was not returning for this new chapter, my expectations were low for Whannell and company. Surprisingly, however, they were able to deliver multiple satisfying scary moments. Although most of the scares are jump scares, there were one or two scenes towards the beginning that built tension very well and had me on the edge of my seat (one scene in particular will leave you frightened to leave your laptop opened).
At the center of all of the horror and chaos is Elise, played wonderfully by Lin Shaye. Amidst a cast of mostly unknown talent (including director Whannell), Shaye is able to give the film most of its heart. Many of the horror scenes rely on her to be either the calming voice or the badass heroine, and Shaye plays both of those roles perfectly.
“Insidous: Chapter 3” could have been a disaster, but thanks to some genuinely scary moments and veteran acting from Lin Shaye, the film is able to be mostly enjoyable. It feels unnecessary at times, which makes me think there should not be a fourth chapter, but I also never thought that I’d enjoy a third chapter. Maybe Whannell can prove me wrong again.
GRADE: B