Like many struggling writers, true-crime novelist Ellison (Ethan Hawke) spends far too much time in his room watching films.
What’s harder to swallow is that none of them are Insidious , with which Scott Derrickson’s slick horror shares much of its DNA (not to mention its producers).
Both movies feature young families uncovering old secrets in new houses; both have child-snatching demons glimpsed only in passing; and both aim for that tricky combination of spooky and funny.
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Happily, both mainly hit the mark.
In terms of spooky, one of Ellison’s films (found, naturally, in the attic) shows a family hanging from the tree in his backyard, while another reveals a face that moves eerily audience-wards behind his back.
Though a little less scary, Sinister tackles its comedy scenes better than the earlier film, particularly those featuring fanboy cop Deputy So-And-So (the brilliantly awkward James Ransone) who’s all too eager to help Ellison with his investigations.
“That is a conversation I would not want to be around,” he offers when Ellison decides to tell wife Tracy (Juliet Rylance) they’ve moved into a murder house.
Frankly, she might have guessed something was up by how much time hubby spends wandering around the attic swinging his baseball bat at shadows.
Thanks to a dependably driven performance from Hawke, Chris Norr’s gorgeously glassy cinematography and several shiversome reveals, Sinister manages to be both an opportunistic Insidious clone and a much more consistent watch.
It may be as subtle as Ellison’s trusty slugger, but there’s no denying it gets the job done.
