Summer Scares: Insidious: The Red Door

BY JOHN CARTER JR

Insidious is back with its newest installment, “Insidious: The Red Door.”Let’s get this out of the way, I thoroughly enjoyed this installment in the Insidious franchise. The film does an excellent job at conveying the story it wants to tell. Does it serve every possible thing you could hope out of a fifth installment in the franchise, no. However, that being said, the story it gives us is a beautiful and frightening tale about repressing trauma and the growing relationships we have with our parents. Patrick Wilson’s directorial debut is an impressive first entry, with the film harkening back to the original films, specifically “Insidious: Chapter 2.” The film’s cinematography is superb, its acting is exquisite, and its classic Insidious aesthetic is among the best in the franchise. That being said, let’s examine the bad and the good components of this film to come to a conclusion about its overall quality. To get it out of the way, let’s start with the bad.  

What knocks this film down a few points for me is the symptom of having so many great toys to play with and not enjoying them all. Multiple characters, demonic and otherwise, from the Insidious series make an appearance in this film. Steve Coulter’s Carl and Barbara Hershey’s Lorraine are the biggest characters from the franchise that have untapped potential in this film. With Rose Byrne’s Renai, Leigh Whannel’s Specs, Angus Sampson’s Tucker, and Lin Shaye’s Elise Rainier being used sparingly. 

The film leaves the audience with a desire for more Insidious and, frankly, another film starring fan favorite Lin Shaye. While this film does a nice job of giving a heartfelt conclusion to the story of the Lambert family (Other than Lorraine), it leaves”Insidious: Chapter 3” and “The Last Key’s” core group’s stories on the table. That may seem like a positive with the door being open to the possibilities of the future; with that being said, if fans come to the theater with the hope for a resolution to the cliffhanger in “Insidious: Chapter 2,” they may be left disappointed.

Now onto the good, Sinclair Daniel and Ty Simpkins are serving liberal college student realness in this film. Simpkins’ Edgy emo art boy Dalton with  Daniel’s supportive and comedic weirdo Chris have college best friend chemistry down pat. Following these characters through the dorms, a frat house, and the further is a treat throughout the film. Patrick Wilson, while operating mostly on his own throughout the film, gets excellent character development through the exploration of his trauma with his parents and demons. His scene getting an MRI scan, talking with Renai, and learning more about his family’s past keep his story well paralleled to Dalton. Joseph Bishara, who plays the Lipstick demon, gets excellent scenes that, while leaving the audience a little hungry for more, gives a good face and great scares. 

Bishara’s performance harkens back to the Tiny Tim-themed rendition in the original film. Seeing Dalton, Josh, and the Lipstick Demon in confrontations a decade later in this film is excellent. The film even features unused shots of the basement scene from “Insidious: Chapter 2.” The film serves us one of the scariest moments in the franchise with the Lipstick Demon at the climax of the film in Dalton’s dorm room, which harkens back to the plot of the original film. Color palates and the environments in the Further in this film are delicious. Because of this, along with the means by which the film is concluded, Dalton and Josh have a sentimental send-off that will leave long-time Insidious fans feeling emotionally moved. 

A sweet scene featuring Lin Shaye’s Elsie that, again, leaves more to be desired, is touching. The film excellently tells its story about the shared trauma of a father and son – trauma that they can no longer ignore. It is about recognizing that trauma does more harm when we repress our troubles than when we deal with them.

At the beginning of the Insidious franchise, a family is tortured with the demons of their past and present. In the future, we see the repercussions of the attempts made to repress the traumatic events they went through. “Insidious: The Red Door” is a stand-out entry in the franchise as it addresses that repression in a scary, colorful, and beautiful way. While it leaves the door open for some storylines (unintentionally or not), it seals the door on the trauma of a father and a son no longer haunted by what they went through, now willing to face what comes their way. Knowing that life will be scary, keeping a steady stride as Elise would advise, they can “stay the further ahead” of themselves. 

 In balancing the good and the bad, I give “Insidious: The Red Door 8/10.” Well done Patrick Wilson and company for an excellent directorial debut!