Friday 1 April 2011

Jokes are fun...

...but, in all seriousness, go see "Insidious." Not perfect, but REALLY impressive for something shot for only $800,000. Plus, it's heart is in the right place and it's proof that gore-free PG-13 horror doesn't have to be budgetary crutch - if nothing else, it's a PERFECT "scary-movie" that you could probably take kids to (I'd say 10 and up, your mileage may vary.)

FWIW, it's basically a Haunted House movie where the "house" part is kind-of incidental - Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne are a couple whose son's coma has turned him into some kind of ghost-attracting antenna; so they can't just pick up and leave to solve the problem.

Storywise, if you've seen a ghosts-in-the-house movie, particularly "Poltergeist," you know where this is going, but the fun (for me anyway) is in the execution. James Wan and Leigh Wannell remind us WHY the original "Saw" was so effective in early "spooky noises" sections, but when it's time to make with the ghosts they also let slip a surprising sentimentality for ultra-oldschool "kiddie" spook-house imagery - the 3rd act looks like an attempt to adapt a local High School's annual charity "Haunted House" into a movie. That's probably going to be the "checking out" point for a lot of people, but I dug it.

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