Luke McWilliams gives his review of the 2023 horror film, Insidious: The Red Door (M).

Picking up immediately after the events of Insidious: Chapter 2, the Lambert family chooses to get hypnotised to forget their terrifying experiences of the supernatural realm of ‘The Further’. Nine years later, Josh Lambert (Patrick Wilson) drives his distant son Dalton (Ty Simpkins) to his visual arts college. Once there, Dalton is encouraged to dig deep, and soon paints a picture of a mysterious red door …

Blumhouse Productions’ penchant for low-budget, high-return movies spawned the surprisingly successful Insidious franchise. Now populated with sequels, prequels and spin-offs, this entry closes the chapter on the original Lambert family, who haven’t been seen since 2013’s Chapter 2. Ten years have also passed in the cinematic world, and the Lambert family has since been torn apart. Choosing to block their shared trauma in an effort to recover as a family, they are nevertheless estranged and haunted by the demons that lurk in the supernatural realm behind the red door.

The mood and ambience are heightened with simple low lighting, atmospheric score, jump scares and horror makeup. Like ‘the upside down’ in Stranger Things, The Further’s mechanics are kept vague, as such Lovecraftian horrors may just be beyond mere mortals’ understanding. It is enough that it is a place to best avoid and, if one is unlucky enough to astral-project themselves into it, to quickly get out!

Verdict: A fantastic feature film directorial debut from lead Patrick Wilson. A genuine, bittersweet father-and-son drama tackling themes of loss, grief and the power of family. 4 stars.

Luke McWilliams, themovieclub.net.