Blumhouse Productions
The less popular and more dim-witted sibling to his The Conjuring franchise, James Wan’s Insidious series balances hoary clichés with unintentionally hilarious nonsense about astral projection, an alternate realm known as the Further, and creaky creatures that resemble second-hand haunted house spooks—or, in the case of the original film, Star Wars: Episode I—The Phantom Menace’s fire-faced Darth Maul.
It’s the dregs of mainstream horror, silly and scare-free save for an occasionally decent jolt. And following 2018’s turgid Insidious: The Last Key, it’s now back for additional banal terror with Insidious: The Red Door, a sequel that takes place directly after 2013’s Insidious: Chapter 2, thereby allowing for the return of primary stars Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne.
Wilson also makes his directorial debut with Insidious: The Red Door (in theaters July 7), given that Wan has moved on to bigger blockbuster fare like the forthcoming Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Nonetheless, co-creator (and co-star) Leigh Whannell remains responsible for helping conceive the story upon which Scott Teems’ script is based. Such creative continuity, alas, simply means that the film peddles more of its trademark supernatural inanity. Its characters may be desperate to remember the things they’ve willfully suppressed, but as this dud confirms, some things are best left forgotten.