I’m a huge fan of the Insidious series. It’s unfortunate that these films get lumped in with The Conjuring, simply because James Wan directed the first two installments, and Patrick Wilson played a role in both franchises. The similarities end there, if you ask me. The Conjuring uses dry, recycled religious themes, and under the ambiguity of claiming “Based on A True Story”, it glorifies two people who were likely either scam artists or delusional. Insidious, however, creates a universe all its own, executes jump scares at unexpected moments, and possesses a continuity of characters and plot that is a rare treasure among horror movie sequels. That being said, on to my review of Insidious: The Red Door.

Though I tried to resist it, I got the feels right away at the onset of this film. I was presented with a family I had followed for two films prior to The Red Door (Insidious 1 and 2), who had children the same ages as mine. I recognized them and their story, and I was immediately invested.

The plot gets laid out pretty quickly, but doesn’t come across as forced. Josh Lambert (father) and Dalton Lambert (son) were hypnotized nine years ago — something they both wanted and volunteered to undergo — after the traumatic events of Insidious 1 & 2. Josh and Dalton are astral projectors (people who are able to travel to other places in their sleep, an out-of-body experience they remember upon waking). While innocently traveling in his dreams, ten year old Dalton ended up in The Further, a shadowy realm where demonic presences latch onto humans and use them to enter our world. (You don’t want to end up in The Further. You never know what might be lurking in the swirling fog or the distant blackness. It could be a dead-eyed woman with a giant smile. Or a mangled body crawling toward you at lightning speed.)

Josh is able to save Dalton from The Further in the first film, but ends up trapped there himself in the second. Needless to say, these two come out worse for the wear and decide to erase their memory of the whole thing using good old-fashioned hypnosis, which always works in horror movies. (That’s okay… No movie is without its tropes!)

Patrick Wilson directing this new installment was a fantastic idea. His understanding and appreciation of the Insidious universe comes to life. The 1 hour and 47 minute run time is full of creepy visuals that keep things rolling, some that made even my horror-desensitized brain feel a little on edge. I enjoyed seeing familiar specters from the previous films alongside brand new ones. And I felt that I cared about the characters. Well, mostly… 

When they introduced Dalton’s new friend, Chris, I thought she might be a refreshing addition. Unfortunately, her character felt, to me, like a failed attempt at filling the shoes of recurring characters, Specs and Tucker, who bring comic relief to the Insidious movies with their nonchalant geek squad vibe. Chris didn’t take things seriously, often distracting me from the suspense of a scene. She didn’t make me giggle like Specs and Tucker do. But I’ll forgive her… because Dalton needed a friend quirky enough to believe him. Who else but a free-spirited art student would believe that, while sleeping, Dalton had entered a dark and dangerous world in his dreams, unable to remember his childhood trauma of being captured by the demon who lives there, and led that demon back into his life?

I kinda missed the Spectral Sightings crew — Spec and Tucker, and of course, Elise Rainier, played by the incomparable Lin Shaye. But they weren’t necessary here. The story in The Red Door lies with the Lambert Family. 

There are parallels between this family and my own — their three children so close in ages to mine, their love for one another, their troubles — so perhaps I can easily relate. In Insidious: The Red Door, the Lamberts have gone to Hell and back. Their dark past has shaken them to their core, and ultimately divided them. They must pull together, and come through for each other once more. But even if the Lamberts survive The Further again, they can never be sure their nightmare is truly over.

This movie gets 5 out of 5 stars. I loved it. I paid $5.99 to rent it on Google. No regrets. I plan to buy the DVD next to complete our Insidious collection. I recommend watching the other four first if you haven’t! Thanks for reading! Keep it spooky out there!