Insidious [Blu-Ray]

Seven years ago, director James Wan and writer Leigh Whannell's psychological thriller, Saw, unintentionally became the catalyst to the infamous "torture porn" sub-genre. Since then, the two Australian filmmakers have taken on the now nearly impossible task of proving that you don't need spewing intestines or CGI blood to scare modern day audiences, and they've definitely accomplished this with sleeper horror hit Insidious. The film starts like any other "haunted house" movie, introducing the viewers to seemingly happy couple Renai and Josh (played respectively by Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson), moving into an old house with their three children. After one of their sons falls into a mysterious coma in the creepy Victorian dwelling, it's seems evident to the audience that they'll be getting the same classic "boo!" scares you'd expect from a ghost film. Luckily, the filmmakers have anticipated that general assumption and quickly turn the tables on the viewers, unleashing genuine twists, scares and ghouls without ever having to slice a character's arteries. Insidious marks James Wan's fourth time in the director's chair and with his latest entry, he definitely demonstrates much growth as a director, as his skilful eye for extreme detail unquestionably enhances the frightening set pieces shown throughout this surprisingly low-budget horror film. Despite the fact that the final cut of Insidious received an unneeded CGI makeover in certain scenes courtesy of the producers of Paranormal Activity, the film is still able to utilize elements of classic haunted house films like Poltergeist and The Amityville Horror while also being able to re-define the horror genre. The Blu-Ray special features include three behind-the-scenes featurettes that showcase the director and cast's down-to-earth personalities and also convey hilarious anecdotes from the set. A must-have for horror fans!