<Review by: Sailesh Ghelani>

Directed by Leigh Whannell. Starring Dermot Mulroney, Stefanie Scott, Lin Shaye, Angus Sampson, Leigh Whannell

I don’t think I watched the previous Insidious movies and after seeing Chapter 3 I don’t think I’ll bother.

A flimsy set up where psychic Elise (Lin Shaye) calls on Quinn’s (Stefanie Scott) dead mother leads to a man with an oxygen mask haunting Quinn and eventually Elise as well. And then follow all the usual horror film tropes done relatively badly and with no reasoning or motivation apart from the usual line about ‘evil’.

Shock tactics are used with loud sound effects to get you to jump in your seat but not once do you feel really scared or concerned by any of the protagonists in the film. The poor acting and lousy dialogue don’t help either.

Most of the people in the screening I attended were playing with their phones or yawning. There were intermittent points when they chuckled at something ridiculous said on screen.

I really can’t find much to say about Insidious: Chapter 3 where director Leigh Whannel makes a guest starring role as a spook exterminator and then you realise the film gets even worse especially in the last scene where Lin Shaye talks about teaming up with him and his buddy to fight ghosts. Totally unbelievable and contrived.

Apparently, there was a theatre in America that started screening Insidious: Chapter 3 instead of Inside Out. If only it were the other way around, the audiences would not have complained.

PS: I haven’t really liked any of the horror films from Blum House Productions. Hmmm…