Last month marked the release of director Adam Robitel's INSIDIOUS: THE LAST KEY on VOD. The fourth entry in the series created by James Wan and Leigh Whannell is still going strong and I have high hopes for the future of this fright flick franchise. With that in mind, I thought it would be a good time to take a look back at the franchise as a whole as it stands at the moment and pick out the five scariest scenes from the series (thus far). Will your favorite scenes and sequences make the list? Only one way to find out. So join us here at AITH as we take a look at some killer scary scenes that made us jump in our chairs and grip our loved ones for dear death. Now let's get to it!
I don't know about you, but I found Leigh Whannell's directing debut with INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 3 to be an utterly spooky delight. Maybe it was a case of low expectations, or maybe I'm just a cheerleader for all things Leigh Whannell. Either way, I grooved big-time to all the frights that Whannell put forth in this third entry in the series. But my favorite moment – and the moment I thought was the scariest from CHAPTER 3 – was when the creeper with the breathing mask jumped out of the apartment window and plunged down three to who knows how many f*cking stories to his (second) death. But wait, just as Papa Dermot Mulroney peeks his head back in the window and lets his broken-legged daughter take a look, the man in the mask jumps right up into her moon-face and snatches her ass out the window. Almost. Good scare. Killer reveal.
Sure this sequence from Adam Robitel's recently released INSIDIOUS: THE LAST KEY was all over the promotional materials for the fourth entry, but that's because it is an utter nightmare of a sequence and I feel no shame including above the "Broken Window" gag from INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 3. Here Spencer Locke (aka the preteen girl from the RESIDENT EVIL flicks) is lurking around a dark basement (good thinking) and runs afoul of a demon with – get this shite – keys for f*cking fingers! Had the demon just nightmared out of the shadows and then scurried up a wall, this scene would have been super freaky. The fact that the demon actually "unlocks" the girl's… you know what, for the one person who still hasn't seen this new movie, I'm going to leave all of that to the imagination. Brr.
Truth be told, I never enjoyed being a child. Hated it in fact. Why? Because I was always CERTAIN that some horror movie bullsh*t like this sequence from James Wan's INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 2 was going to happen to me each and every night. Now granted, I have yet to experience a night where my tin can telephone betrays me and a gaggle of ghosts bust out of my closet like a goddamn magic show, but all the same it is scenes like this that make me glad the INSIDIOUS series waited until I was clear on the other side of puberty to invade theaters and nightmares in equal measure. That said, I'm going to show this scene to my kids before bed every night to make sure they stay asleep. Too harsh? Meh. Bet their asses stay in Slumberland until dawn, so I win.
I remember when the first INSIDIOUS came out I made my little sister watch it. She was, like, 18 at the time but still, the first half of the film scared the hell out of her. In fact, for months – and still probably to this day – I could start singing Tiny Tim's "Tip-Toe Through the Tulips" and start dancing like the Lollipop Guild and she would FREAK out. And I totally get her reaction. This part is deeply creepy and utterly freaky as all f*ck. In fact, I bet you anything that I could call her right now (at 2:30 AM) and leave her a voicemail of me singing the song and when she gets it in the morning it will ruin her entire day. Let's find out, shall we? (Giggles and looks under Flamin' Hot Cheetos bag for phone).
There is a part of my brain that believes that if this one single scene wasn't in James Wan's original INSIDIOUS there would never have been sequels. Or as much love and respect as the film has garnered. Sure, the film would be well-liked, but I think it would have fallen more on the side of DEAD SILENCE had it not been for this moment – and, more specifically, the shot above. This scene was and is so fucking terrifying that I don't know a single person that didn't jump out of their chairs. Thank you, James Wan.
What scene from the INSIDIOUS series do YOU think is the scariest? Make sure to hit us up and let us know in the comments below or on social media!