‘Insidious: The Red Door,’ the alleged final chapter in the ‘Insidious’ franchise (much like ‘Insidious: The Last Key’ was supposed to be), suffers from a lot of tropes, cheap scares, and mundanity that characterized ‘Insidious: Chapter 2’ and ‘The Last Key’. The original is the standout out film in the series. Not only was it genuinely creepy but it ended up being one of the more influential horror films of the 2010s while ‘Insidious: Chapter 3' was the pleasant surprise.
‘Insidious: The Red Door’ is star Patrick Wilson’s debut as director as he previously only stared in ‘Insidious: Chapter 1 and 2.’ I definitely see directorial potential, despite his first outing being lackluster. The film is clunky and the script is awkward despite its valiant effort to tackle father and son bonding, mental illness, and generational trauma.
The score for ‘Insidious: The Red Door’ is missing the jarring Bernard Herman-esque strings that haven’t graced our nerves since ‘Insidious: Chapter 2’ If it’s been excluded because of a rights issue, it would be well worth the fee to get that iconic piece of the score back.
Despite a handful of inspired moments and a noble attempt at tackling generational trauma and father/son bonding, ‘Insidious: The Red Door’ is an underwhelming and awkward mess that, despite a few inspired moments of ingenuity, lacks the craft and atmosphere of the original.
MY STAR RATING 2.5/5
Check out other films in the Insidious franchise available at The Brown Deer Public Library
