Cast: Dermot Mulroney, Stefanie Scott, Angus Sampson, Leigh Whannell, Lin Shaye, Tate Berney, Ele Keats
Direction: Leigh Whannell
Genre: Horror
Duration: 1 hour 37 minutes
Review: The prequel to the successful horror series is helmed by a new director this time around, bringing you a mixed bag of treats, or scares, to be more appropriate. Surprisingly, there is even the odd joke or two (perhaps to ease the tension a bit during intense parts in the narrative) that might or might not work for you, depending on whether you prefer your horror fare to be dead serious.
Quinn's curiosity regarding the supernatural in general and contacting her deceased mom in particular leads her to Elise's home, where she tells the latter how much she misses her mother. Elise reluctantly agrees and tries a preliminary session, only to be terrified by a demonic voice that scares the living daylights out of her. She snaps out of it and warns Quinn, "You call out to one of the dead all of them can hear you."
However, Quinn's attempts to contact her mother have already caused a demon who wants her soul, to latch on to her. It gets more brazen in its physical manifestations till Quinn's very life is threatened. Her dad Sean (Mulroney), Elise and a self-styled ghostbuster pair have to rescue her before she is finished.
Whannell certainly takes his time to create a sense of dread. This is in contrast to the latter part of the film, where there are some overly loud moments. The film is high on ominousness, especially those dark atmospherics when Elise slips into the 'Further', a place fraught with danger. With the prequel and the subsequent two films now covering the gamut of scares, it's clear that the next one in the series will have to have some new ideas to keep the franchise fresh.
{[['
']]}
']]}
