Movie Review

Look, if this is THE END of the Insidious series, then okay, I can live with it. After all, Insidious: The Last Key gives Lin Shaye (as parapsychologist Dr. Elise Rainier) more room to shine than ever before. She does, too. Even if the script and the directing is bit of a dullard, she makes her part in it work for a satisfactory conclusion, er, beginning as this one bumps us right into the very opening of the series. Yeah, that’s how crowded this one is.

Of course, there’s a whole hell of a lot of sadness to plow through first. This entry is surprisingly emotional as Elise returns to the house of her youth, where she was beaten by her abusive father (Josh Stewart) because of her “gift”. She must face demons of the past, relive the death of her mother (Tessa Ferrer), face an unexpected reunion with her brother (Bruce Davison), and solve the mystery that has unleashed a whole host of ghosts into the house for her cousin (Spencer Locke) to deal with. It is all due to her involvement in The Further, which was expressly discussed in the third movie.

But let’s seriously talk about that marvelous opening. Because, for what feels like ten to fifteen minutes, we get a wonderfully, moody foundation that strikes all the right notes as we get to see Elise (as a child) rise above her abusive father and face the demons in her own haunted house. It is emotionally charged and pretty damn scary, too, as a child’s whistle is turned into an object of paranormal possession.

And then, once we start the return investigation to the home (now as an adult), we slide right off the rails. With Tucker (Angus Sampson) and Specs (writer Leigh Whannell) still by her side, they enter this homecoming with a solid foundation. Unfortunately, the laughs are a bit more than groans this time. Sometimes they land but mostly, as is the case when they try to hit on some girls in a diner, it just falls flat.

We do; however, get a new monster to adore. Designed with Guillermo del Toro in mind, Key Face (Javier Botet) crawls across the floor before hovering over his victims as he pierces their skin with his skeleton keys as fingers and turns their voices off and then their hearts. It’s creepy, yes, and its presence helps elevate the finale in The Further. But Robitel doesn’t know how to effectively use the monster and gives us a bit of an overkill with the usual feed of jump scares and shock shots.

This is a typical horror movie and a by-the-numbers haunted house picture. From the creaky floorboards to the strange figures in the dark, everything is here. There are a couple of nice shocks and solid scares, but mostly this one lets the air out of the suspense with one too many twists.

Insidious: The Last Key unlocks the truth about this series. It has nowhere else to go.

Film Details

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for disturbing thematic content, violence and terror, and brief strong language.
Runtime: 103 mins
Director: Adam Robitel
Writer: Leigh Whannell
Cast: Lin Shaye, Leigh Whannell, Angus Sampson
Genre: Horror
Tagline: Fear Comes Home.
Memorable Movie Quote: "You're the only one I trust to go down there with me."
Theatrical Distributor: Universal Pictures
Official Site: http://sites.sonypictures.com/insidiousthelastkey/discanddigital/
Release Date: January 5, 2018
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: April 3, 2018
Synopsis: Parapsychologist Dr. Elise Rainier faces her most fearsome and personal haunting yet, as she is drawn back to her ghostly childhood home, where the terror began.

Blu-ray Reviw

Home Video Distributor: Sony Pictures
Available on Blu-ray - April 3, 2018
Screen Formats: 2.40:1
Subtitles: English; English SDH; Spanish
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; Single disc (1 BD-50); Digital copy; Movies Anywhere
Region Encoding: Region-free playback

With an aspect ratio of 2.39:1, this is a beautiful release from Sony. It's crisp and detailed and features a bevy of strong shadows and dense blues. Digitally shot, there is a smoothness to the whole production that cheapens the whole thing, though. The 1080p transfer does not disappoint. Lines are clear and the depth is like a rippling wave extending down some pretty lengthy hallways. Flesh tones are perfectly saturated and the soundtrack – presented here on a standout DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack – is flawless.

Commentary:

None

Special Features:

We get a recap of the series, deleted scenes, an alternate ending that thankfully wasn’t used, a look at Key Face, and a look at Becoming Elise. A Movies Anywhere digital copy code is included with purchase.

Dive Into the Insidious Universe (5 min)

Chilling Deleted Scenes (19 min)

Alternate Ending: Further Prison (3 min)

Unlocking the Keys (3 min)

Going Into the Further (3 min)

Becoming Elise (5 min)