Insidious

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1:43

Insidious

PG-13

2011

1h 43m

Horror

Mystery & Thriller

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Popcornmeter

66%

Tomatometer

176 Reviews

62%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

A family looks to prevent evil spirits from trapping their comatose child in a realm called The Further.

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Critics Consensus

Aside from a shaky final act, Insidious is a very scary and very fun haunted house thrill ride.

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Jim Schembri

The Age (Australia)

Jun 16, 2011

3.5/5

Director James Wan here proves himself very adept at building dramatic tension and making you anxious about the things going on in your peripheral vision.

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David Stratton

At the Movies (Australia)

May 12, 2011

2/5

If the film was attempting to be more than just a horror movie, it doesn't work on that level either.

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Philip French

Guardian

May 1, 2011

A supernatural horror flick by and for horror buffs.

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Sarah Vincent

Sarah G Vincent Views

Aug 21, 2026

While not necessarily scary, the story is completely absorbing and chock full of surprises with an outstanding ensemble cast. It is so far the best looking one in the bunch thanks to director and coeditor James Wan and not one, but two cinematographers

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Grant Watson

Fiction Machine

Dec 15, 2025

6/10

I think one of the reasons Insidious has never quite reached the popularity (or noteriety) of the other Wan-Whannel creations is the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink scattershot approach it takes to genre.

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Patrick Cavanaugh

The Wolfman Cometh

Sep 11, 2025

2/5

There's a handful of big, effective scares, but the tonal imbalance between the front half and back half don't really align in a satisfying way.

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Robert P

@Superbad Sep 13, 2026

Insidious = a 3.5 star Movie!

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TheMovieSearch R

@TheMovieSearch Sep 8, 2026

Insidious is a film I decided to finally watch after seeing the latest installment in theaters, and I have to say, the first movie doesn’t quite live up to the hype that some of the newer entries have created. That doesn’t mean it’s a bad movie. In fact, I still think it’s a great horror film, but it definitely feels like the beginning of something much bigger. What I appreciated most was how well the story established the foundation for the franchise. The filmmakers did a good job creating the atmosphere, introducing the characters, and developing the supernatural elements in a way that made me curious about where the story could go next. It’s definitely creepy, but there’s also something fun about watching the foundation of a franchise that would eventually become much larger. You can see the potential for what they were trying to build, and I think they accomplished that successfully.

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Melanie A

@melanierstacey Aug 30, 2026

Classic creepy movie. Must see

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Leland K

@RT08614893 Aug 28, 2026

It's like someone is gaining experience making movies, and this is one early in their career. The story is good, if you can just allow yourself some "suspension of disbelief" you'll enjoy it more. -- After finishing the movie I'm surprised it started a series with multiple movies, but if you think of it as a date movie then I understand, the movies is more focused from the wife's perspective, more of an emotional roller coaster for her.

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Audrey A

@AndreyAnne Aug 26, 2026

My coworker told me getting scared of this movie was for kids...I COULDN'T SLEEP!

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Tyler M

@tyler99darien Aug 22, 2026

Good start to a series I think the ending was pushing to much for it to be a lead on to another movie but the build up to the possession was a good intense thrill

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Insidious: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

A family looks to prevent evil spirits from trapping their comatose child in a realm called The Further.

Director: James Wan
Producer: Jason Blum, Steven Schneider, Oren Peli
Screenwriter: Leigh Whannell
Distributor: FilmDistrict
Production Co: Alliance, Sony Pictures Television, IM Global
Rating: PG-13 (Frightening Images|Brief Strong Language|Terror|Thematic Material|Violence)
Genre: Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 1, 2011, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 3, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $54.0M
Runtime: 1h 43m
Sound Mix: SDDS, Dolby Digital

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