On Googling the word “insidious”, I was reliably informed of its definition: “proceeding in a gradual, subtle way, but with harmful effects… STDs can be insidious.” Overall, I think this is a rather apt description of the latest work from the creators of Saw and Paranormal Activity. Directed by James Wan, this far-fetched horror unfolds at the pace of a tortoise wading through molasses with an outcome as desirable and satisfying as a positive chlamydia test.
The story follows two parents (Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson), who upon moving into a new house start experiencing bumps in the night. When one morning their son falls into a coma, the plot thickens into a congealed mess, consisting of an old woman draped in her net curtains, two inept ghostbusters and a demon with a striking resemblance to Darth Maul.
Despite a cliché premise, for the last half an hour the pace quickened considerably. The idea of ghosts armed with shotguns and psychotic smiles sounds far-fetched, but in a dark cinema it’s surprisingly effective. This combined with a jarring set of dissonant piano notes meant that on more than one occasion I found myself hiding behind my hands.
All performances are strong, and visually, Wan creates a suitably creepy atmosphere with claustrophobic camera angles. It’s just unfortunate that the last scene was so predictable and unsatisfying, leaving the audience shaking, not with fear, but with rage at the thought that they would never get those 102 minutes of their lives back again.