The Pop Corn Preacher: Film Review

Directed by: James Wan
Cast: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne and Ty Sympkins

Pop Factor:

Rating: 15

Plot

Alot of horror films I've watched in the past have tended have one character who gets repeatedly tormented, until they go completely insane and either die or escape. Now I personally don't like these horror films and thankfully Insidious does something a little different. While there is alot of panic to begin with it never really turns into something you might see on the Kerrang music channel. Insidious follows the story of a family plagued by ghosts they think belong to their new home but after calling in professional help on the matter, they soon realise their predicament is much worse.

Acting

No actor in this film goes over the top and they all embrace their roles really well. I would say the stand out performance in this film was from Patrick Wilson, who plays the father, Josh Lambert. He is really believable every step of the way, and although the character he plays is useless for a good duration of the film, he still manages to step up to the plate, even when he isn't in center shot. I liked the paranormal investigator character played by Lin Shaye, I felt her performance was a lot stronger than I was expecting. Being a woman of a certain age I was not expecting her to be able to attack her role with as much power and life as she did.

Positive Points

There were a few good points about this film:

For one I felt the building of tension was done to a really good standard. They do a really good job of making you feel unnerved and unsure of where the story is going next.

The story is also another highlight in this film. Many ghost stories find it difficult to explain the strange events; I liked the story in this because although at times, the plot may feel convoluted and far-fetched it manages to create an engrossing adventure with a pretty exciting twist.

The sound in this film is what frightened me most, with 5.1 surround sound I was truly shaking in my boots. Although having great sound is a good thing in a horror film; it should not be the only scary element. I would say that the Jumpy moments felt abit lacking simply because the scary imagery wasn't filmed in a way that was truly frightening.

Points for Improvement

Although it is a decent horror film I still think that they could have do one or two things slightly different to make it more entertaining to watch:

I felt the scare factor could have been improved simply by just not showing as much they did. Some of the camerawork was not nearly as strong as it could have been. For a masterclass in creepy camera work I would reference either Stanley Kubrick for his work on the Shining or Alfred Hitchcock's various Films, such as psycho and the birds. These directors knew exactly how much to show, in order to leave enough to the viewers imagination.

I also felt the timing of the jump moments were quite poor, I felt that the moment I jumped wasn't in synch with the characters, in turn dampening the overall credibility of this horror film. So I would say the timing of the scares could have been Improved as well.

ThePopCornPreacher Says:

"Insidious is a must see film if you want a modern take on horror films of old. It lacks in timing and visual taunts but makes up for it in a fun story which feels like could have really happened!"

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