When they decided to make Saw II within a year of Saw I was a bit heartbroken that they were knocking off a sequel like that, when they couldn’t possibly come up with another story like Saw. So I was impressed when Saw II deepened the mythology of Jigsaw and pulled another twist that I didn’t see coming. It actually took until Saw VI for me to feel like the series was finally running out of story, and I still appreciated the effort of closing out the last two sequels while still having something to say.
Insidious: Chapter 2 is not the Saw II to James Wan and Leigh Whannell’s own Insidious, but it’s still kinda fun.
Insidious: Chapter 2 gives us before, after and during the events of Insidious. A prologue introduces young Elise (still the voice of Lin Shaye but a different actor, Lindsay Seim) meeting Josh Lambert as a young boy (Garrett Ryan). It’s a rather effective touch to give the sequence continuity with Shaye, obscuring her mouth as much as possible, though there are inevitable lip sync issues. The prologue also explains the concepts of Insidious and The Further for newbies, although I don’t imagine the rest of the movie will have much value if yoy hadn’t seen Insidious, no matter how much the script helps catch you up.
Back to our story, Renai (Rose Byrne) is dealing with the aftermath of Josh (Patrick Wilson)’s trip into The Further to rescue their son (Ty Simpkins). Elise’s murder is investigated by the police but Josh is cleared. Of course we know that Josh is evil now and I think Renai does too. Wan has some real fun shooting Wilson in scary poses, being nice but we know he’s creepy. It’s a visual wit if you will.
Then the paranormal activity steps up so it can’t be ignored. Specs (Whannell) and Tucker (Angus Sampson) investigate with Josh’s mother Lorraine (Barbara Hershey) in a story that’s self-reflexive and time-reflexive, which is what makes it interesting. The actual story of why Josh came back evil and what his childhood has to do with it isn’t that interesting, but the telling of it through different dimensions, different time periods and through established events is fun. It’s the Back to the Future II of horror sequels.
I don’t get scared by horror movies anyway, but Chapter 2 is less about creating horrific moments. There are plenty of creepy images and jump scares, but the core structure of the film is a heroic adventure. When the film returns to The Further, we meet several characters we’ve been longing to see who return with triumphant reintroductions. That tone is infectious and makes me want to see these characters save the day, even if saving the day means running through black hallways and screaming at ghosts. I liked the new character of Carl (Steve Coulter), a new paranormal investigator who helps Specs and Tucker. He seemed kind, but firm when it comes to evil ghosts.
In order to weave cause and effect through flashbacks and the spirit realm, the dialogue has to be rather on the nose to be clear. The concepts work well enough to bear with it, but I say go for it. I’d rather see more ideas than have filmmakers hold back because it’s too hard to explain what they’re exploring. This isn’t like Jigsaw being articulate but expositional. When characters speak in The Further, it ends up hokey. These are deep metaphysical stakes, for sure, but hearing characters talk about life and death sounds like movie dialogue. Elise outright says “So that’s what that was about” at one point. It’s what we were all thinking when something from earlier in the movie pays off, so it’s fun. I also like when Specs and Tucker wish Elise were still here. They don’t go so far as to say “Or is she?” but we get the satisfaction of wondering who might be helping them from the other side. Josh ends up outright monologuing in the end about how evil he is, but I think the film knows he’s monologuing.
The end is pretty much a total copout. I’m not talking about the epilogue/setup for Insidious 3, that part is fine. I call bullshit on the resolution to the Josh story, but it’s hard to describe without spoiling. Is it too much to say it’s like the Adamantium bullet in X-Men Origins: Wolverine? Or Armin Tamzarian on “The Simpsons?” It’s saying, “And here’s why we’ll never talk about this again,” which isn’t even necessary in a movie. The sequel can just not visit the Lamberts again. You don’t have to explain why we don’t need to see them anymore. Plus, the explanation they’re giving is something they tried once before and it didn’t work the first time, so why should we believe it now? Totally unnecessary.
The bonus features are pretty thorough. They go through the concepts, bringing the whole cast back, the makeup and scary stuff. There’s a feature on the real ghosts of Linda Vista Hospital, where they shot the movie, which is the same stuff I’ve heard every time I’ve visited a movie in production at Linda Vista Hospital. It’s fine, they have fun with it, and if it’s not your job to visit this place over and over again you might find it informative. Three of the “Spectral Visions” shorts star the characters Specs and Tucker with Elise. They give you some bonus scares and spooky backstory.
The on set Q&A from our set visit is included. You can see my bald spot sitting in the front row in a blue striped shirt. It’s well edited to capture the camaraderie of the panel, but you don’t hear us asking questions. Maybe because we were not mic’ed, but they printed our questions in interstitial text. Dude, I would have signed the release form to use my voice.
Interestingly, Bibbs didn’t care much for the original and found this an improvement.
I liked the first one and found this a weaker sequel, but I wouldn’t call it Inshitious. I had fun and as much as I could point out the flaws, I was enjoying the ride.
Fred Topel is a staff writer at CraveOnline and the man behind Best Episode Ever and The Shelf Space Awards. Follow him on Twitter at @FredTopel.
