The Conjuring vs. Insidious: The Art of Tension In Horror Movies
How Insidious and The Conjuring use the classic horror tension formula to create some of the best scenes of suspense in recent decades
The argument could be made that we are in a horror renaissance. Original horror movies, in particular, have been taking the limelight and propelling the genre past traps that it has fallen into in recent years. However, one filmmaker has been treading on old formulas and retooling them to create some smart horror recently. That filmmaker is James Wan. While I don’t think his movies are perfect, especially Insidious, he has perfected a horror formula that has been used in horror classics and repurposed them in modern settings. So, with Halloween coming up I thought it might be the perfect time to analyze two keys scenes that use this formula so well.
Insidious: A smart practice in tension that is squandered in the third act
Insidious is by no means a perfect horror movie. I need to put that out there right from the beginning. But the first two-thirds of th…