Director: James Wan.
Starring: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Barbara Hershey, Leigh Whannell, Lin Shaye.
Running Time: 105 minutes.
Certificate: 15.
Synopsis: Starting mere seconds after the end of its predecessor the film sees the Lambert family trying to piece their lives back together after recent events. Unfortunately for them the malevolent beings of ‘the further’ haven’t finished playing with them just yet.
First let me start by saying that in order to get the full enjoyment out of INSIDIOUS CHAPTER TWO I highly recommend refamiliarising yourself with INSIDIOUS. I say this because it is one of the few sequels whose events take place almost immediately after the conclusion of the first.
As the film jumps right back into the action this means that we skip all of the story setup of the first. This turns out to be both a pro and con for the film. The positive is that for once we have a horror sequel that isn’t just a rehash of the first, a la the PARANORMAL ACTIVITY series. Without the slow build-up this time around a lot of the tension is lost, and as fans of INSIDIOUS know it’s that slow first half that really gets you.
Joseph Bishara returns with his string fuelled score. As before it’s the unnatural sounding score that will take you by surprise and you may find yourself out of your seat once or twice.
We are taken back to the 1980’s and the family’s first encounter with ‘the further’. In this we meet Josh as a young boy and are treated to one of the creepiest versions of the game ‘hot or cold’ you’re ever likely to see. We then delve into the origins of the menacing old woman glimpsed in the first film.
The cast of Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne and Barbara Hershey all reprise their roles and are again what really makes this horror film stand apart from its peers. All three are respected actors and all do a good job at making their characters believable. For example, this series is one of the only ones to my knowledge wherein, when the characters go investigating a strange noise in the night, they actually turn on the lights! I do still have to wonder how big houses in America are though as during one of these night-time searches Hershey opens and wanders through a surprisingly vast amount of rooms.
Ghostbusting duo Specs and Tucker take a much bigger part in INSIDIOUS CHAPTER 2. This feels a little too excessive in places, again their partnership is played for laughs (in some cases too much) but given the sheer amount of screen time they have this time around one would hope to see a little more depth to them.
Lin Shaye who played physic Elise also makes a return, voicing her younger self which some viewers might find a little distracting at first, but stick with it as it doesn’t last for long.
The uninitiated might find some of the plot a little confusing to follow and fans of the INSIDIOUS might be a little disappointed that it doesn’t quite hold up to the first film. Not the best horror out in recent times but definitely one of the stronger sequels available.
INSIDIOUS CHAPTER 2 is released in the UK on Friday 13th September.
