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Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Insidious: Chapter 3 Blu-ray Review

Reviewed by Allie Schembra
Go back to the beginning… if you dare… in this chilling prequel that takes place before the unforgettable haunting of the Lambert family. Paranormal investigators Tucker and Specs team up with the psychic Elise to help Quinn, a teenage girl who believes that her late mother is trying to make contact. At first, Elise’s horrific past makes her reluctant to use her ability, but when Quinn’s desperate father begs for assistance, she agrees to venture into The Further. There, she finds a ruthless supernatural entity with a voracious craving for the souls of the living. It’s the darkest chapter yet in this spine-tingling portrayal of evil unleashed. Written and directed by Leigh Whannell, Insidious: Chapter 3 was produced by James Wan (Insidious Franchise, The Conjuring, Furious 7), Jason Blum (Whiplash, The Purge) for Blumhouse Productions and Oren Peli (Paranormal Activity).
Film (3 1/2 out of 5 stars)
Quinn Brennan lost her mother a year ago and feels that her mother is trying to communicate with her. Quinn visits Elise Rapier, to whom she was referred by a friend. When Elise finally agrees to contact Lily, Quinn’s mother, she sees something and tells Quinn she can’t help her. Shortly after, Quinn begins seeing strange things and during an audition for an acting school, she sees a man watching and waving at her.

After an accident forces Quinn to be home for an extended period of time, she is unable to shake the feeling that something strange is happening to her. As it escalates, Quinn ends up being thrown around her bedroom, strange footprints are found in the upstairs apartment and the sprit trying to contact her becomes more aggressive towards her. Her father finds Elise’s name in Quinn’s belongings and goes to see her to plead for her help. Elise again declines, but when a spirit begins visiting her and leads her back to her reading room, she changes her mind and goes to help.

In the meantime, Quinn’s father has found two paranormal investigators, Specs and Tucker, to help them. They set up their equipment, place a camera on Quinn, and wait to see what happens. Unfortunately, Quinn, possessed by the spirit, removes her camera and hides it. As her father, Specs and Tucker investigate, she attacks them. Elise arrives and agrees to contact the spirit to try to get Quinn back. But to do that, she has to enter The Further, and she and Quinn may not make it out alive.

The Insidious movies are always good for a scare. This third chapter had me watching through my fingers at many points and jumping in my seat. The spirits were creepy and the way the footprints were done was really freaky. The jump scenes were done really well and for a first effort, I thought director Leigh Whannell did a great job. The more I watch these movies, the more I like Lin Shae, both as Elise and as an actress. She does such a great job and is really believable in her role. I also really liked Stefanie Scott as Quinn. She’s a good little actress and I look forward to seeing more of her.
Video (4 out of 5 stars)
Insidious: Chapter 3 is presented in 1080p high definition and the picture is really good. A lot of the movie is dark, but everything was still easily seen. The black coloring was true and edge were done well… it all blended seamlessly. Even the slight glare from the window from watching it during the day didn’t make much of a difference; it was still dark and terrifying.
Audio (4 out of 5 stars)
The English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio was really good. The sound was even not too loud. All the dialogue was clear and intelligible. Background was good and at the jump points, the sound didn’t overwhelm the rest of the track. Audio is also available in Spanish 5.1 with subtitles in English, English SDH and Spanish for those who need them.
Extras (3 out of 5 stars)
The special features were pretty interesting. I especially liked the feature detailing the car crash and the feature detailing the creatures. The psychic medium feature was a bit boring and he seemed a little too eager to tell his story. Five shortish featurettes have been provided to add more insight into the film and how things were done. They are available as individual features or as play all. 
  • Origin Story: Making Chapter 3 (19:04) - A look at the film and the characters. Interviews with the cast and crew really give good insight into the story and provide background on the characters and why the story was told in the way it was.
  • Stunts: The Car Crash (9:35) - Filming the scene where Quinn is hit by the car. Poor girl, she looked so scared flying around the street on the wire.
  • Macabre Creations (8:58) - A chat with the special effects guys who created the ghosts in the movie.
  • Cherry Glazerr: Tiptoe Through the Tulips (5:16) - An interview with the band Cherry Glazerr, who did the cover of Tiptoe Through the Tulips, a Tiny Tim song used in the first movie.
  • Being Haunted: A Psychic Medium Speaks (11:34) - Michael J. Kouri a parapsychological investigator and psychic medium talks about psychic mediums and the paranormal effects of the film. He talks about the spirits he sees and what his life and career is like.
  • Deleted Scenes - Three deleted scenes available individually or in a play all option.
    • Specs Explains His Job (1:07) – Specs tells the Brenner family what he does.
    • Hospital Aftermath (2:40) – The doctors are talking to Quinn’s father about her injuries and Quinn at home with her father.
    • Quinn Finds Pictures (1:36) – Quinn finding old photos from when she was a child, of her parents and other memorabilia.
  • Previews – The previews from the beginning of the disc. 
Summary (3 1/2 out of 5 stars)
Insidious: Chapter 3 is a good sequel/prequel to the first two movies. I really liked how the story foretold a lot of what happened in the first movie, which led to explanations in the second movie. Each story continued or explained the others and after seeing all three of them, the whole story makes so much more sense. If you’re looking for a good scare, I recommend watching the whole Insidious series.

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