You can’t have a horror review site without including films directed by James Wan. The Conjuring has secured number one on our leaderboard since we began FearScale. But many critics have called Insidious (2010) his best and most frightening film yet. How will our subject’s heart deal with the demons lurking in the shadows? Walk with us into the Further to find out.
Where To Watch:
SYNOPSIS:
A family looks to prevent evil spirits from trapping their comatose child in a realm called The Further.
Test Subject: Jackie
Age: 32
Gender: Female
Fears: Necrophobia (Fear of Death)
Resting HR: 62-65bpm
Walking HR: 80-85bpm
ANALYSIS:
The blaring opening title shocked our subject’s heart rate to life. In less than twenty minutes, her pulse was racing over 80bpm. Scratching strings from the ominous soundtrack were responsible for boosting her already high levels. Scenes involving children created more uncomfortable moments. Thirty minutes in, night time disturbances overwhelmed our subject causing her to tightly grip her security blanket. A pacing stranger created the enormous amount of anxiety that escalated her heart rate to her peak 102bpm. The scene was capped off with one of many intelligent pulse pounding jumpscares.
Then the film did something rarely seen in horror films. It produced stress and scares in broad daylight. With our subject now unable to let her guard down, the film assaulted her with more frightening moments than her accelerated heart could handle. She sustained multiple spikes above 90bpm. But as supporting actors were introduced, the film released its hold and light comedy began to break the tension. The finale resembled a carnival funhouse with creepy characters wandering in a dark and foreboding atmosphere. These haunting mental images kept our subject’s heart elevated but she never reached the emotional levels created in the first half of the film.
CONCLUSION:
Insidious (2010) is tale of two halves, a horror film built on intense and unpredictable scares that heads into a lighter but still extremely spooky finale. Much of the credit should be given to the memorable soundtrack that had our subject dreading the next nerve wracking moment. Suspense along with a lack of gore worked perfectly to establish high levels of anxiety. Levels that while not high enough to surpass The Conjuring, rocketed Insidious into our top ten heart racing horrors of all time.
Insidious: Burns an average of 284 Calories
Bowl of Spaghetti : 221 Calories
How many Fear Calories did you burn watching Insidious? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
