Josh Lambert heads east to drop his son, Dalton, off at school. However, Dalton's college dream soon becomes a living nightmare when the repressed demons of his past suddenly return to haunt them both.
Director: Patrick Wilson
Cast: Patrick Wilson, Ty Simpkins, Andrew Astor, Rose Byrne, Lin Shaye, Hiam Abbass, Sinclair Daniel
Release Date: July 7, 2023
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Rated PG-13 for violence, terror, frightening images, strong language and suggestive references
Runtime: 1h 47m
Insidious: The Red Door is a solid, if predictable, series closer for the long running horror series. Patrick Wilson stars and directs the film with a confident steady, hand as he sets up a series of traditional scares where something is always lurking in the background. Wilson's director debut leans on old school horror set ups by building tension before delivering a quick shock. He proves more than capable of setting up these sequences even though you get a sense that he's using a rinse and repeat method that dulls the overall effect. On screen, Ty Simpkins carries the lions share of the screen time with Wilson's character playing more of a supporting role in this entry along with Rose Byrne whose appearance is more of an extended cameo. Simpkins, who grew up in the role, is solid throughout even if the trauma slant feels rather quaint by this point after a series of other horror films have covered the same territory. Sinclair Daniel's turn as his roommates brings some fun to the proceedings even though her character's interest in helping him even if it puts her in harms way never really makes much sense. Still, the pair are fun together especially a couple of sequences in a frat house. The rest of the film does serve as wrap up for the overall story set up over the last four films. As such, Insidious: The Red Door isn't the best entry point for newcomers since you'll need some knowledge of the previous films and mythology in order to understand why everything is happening.
C+
