Movies
[BD Review] ‘Insidious: Chapter 2’ Loaded With Atmosphere and Scares, Says Wolfman…
Despite being able to appreciate James Wan’s talent and passion for the horror franchise, I’ve only really ever felt luke warm about any of the films he’s made. Whether it be Saw or, most recently, The Conjuring, there are a lot of things I can easily enjoy about his films but there are detrimental elements that keep me from completely enjoying myself. Any time someone asks me about what I thought of his film, there’s always a bunch of caveats. The first time I saw Insidious, I was really, REALLY enjoying the first half hour or so when the film played as a traditional haunted house movie. That’s when the demon in the nu-metal face paint showed up, Leigh Whannel forced his way into another movie and the whole tone switched from “haunted house” to “goofy Poltergeist rip-off”. For as much as I enjoyed the beginning of the film, the direction it went in both plot and atmosphere canceled out those positive feelings. Going in to Insidious: Chapter 2, I had my reservations as I wasn’t too into the first one and the trailer didn’t really impress me, but against all odds, I ended up enjoying this film much more than the first.
The previous film ended with Josh (Patrick Wilson) rescuing his son from “The Further”, only to have his own body taken over by an evil entity. Dammit, Josh, can you do anything right?! Josh’s wife (Rose Byrne) and family have no idea that he’s become possessed by this evil spirit and are wondering where there are still supernatural beings tormenting them now that their son has returned. When the paranormal investigators from the first film stumble across some footage of Josh as a child, they have a few concerns that they approach Josh’s mom (Barbara Hershey) which only starts to raise more questions. While Josh’s family are trying to deal with him and what could be going on, the investigators and Josh’s mom contact the person who had originally made Josh forget these traumatic events, played by Steve Coulter. The film divides its time between the exploration of what could be haunting Josh as we also see Josh’s family being haunted, and the film climaxes with these two storylines combining in a battle to save Josh’s soul.
My big issue with the first film is that in the first half, nothing funny happens. When genuinely comedic moments happen in the second half, it’s incredibly jarring. The advantage that Insidious: Chapter 2 has is that the whole world has been established in Insidious and now the characters, as well as James Wan, just get to play around with this world. You can enter this movie knowing that when you see the two paranormal investigators, played by Angus Sampson and Leigh Whannell, you know you’re going to be getting some comedic relief, whereas scenes involving Josh and his family should be taken a little more dramatically. The tone is balanced much more successfully in the narrative structure of the film, in that we switch back and forth from comedy to tension much more distinctly. Yes, I actually did allow myself to think things in this movie were intentionally funny.
Naming the film “Chapter 2” really only opens the door for there to be multiple chapters that deal with this concept of “The Further” and I think that Wan could probably pull that off. Even though we shouldn’t grow too attached of Patrick Wilson or Rose Byrne, the connecting characters of the investigators is definitely something that could be explored for quite some time. Even though I strongly disliked the segment in the first film in which Lin Shaye’s character was talking to a ghost through a weird S & M gas mask, having a different investigator in this film allowed for a different type of communication with the spirits, this time requiring dice. Sure, dice are less sexy, but I could see subsequent chapters involving lots of different investigators using all sorts of different communication methods with the only connection being the bumbling investigators seeking these people out. I mean, I can also hope that there’s going to be an entire chapter to Jocelin Donahue, who plays a young Barbara Hershey in a few flashback sequences, but I’m willing to wait a few chapters for that to happen.
Even though I’m stressing the comedy in this film, there are also plenty of scares, possibly even more than the first film. Even though the whole atmosphere of the film is different because of the changes in tension/comedy, there are lots of isolated sequences of creepy things. The most successful, in my opinion, being a sequence involving some tin cans and a string. Wan definitely has his own style, something we’ve seen in both Insidious and The Conjuring, and it showed me the it works more effectively when done in short bursts as opposed to trying to stretch the tension out through an entire film. If you liked the first movie, this is definitely worth checking out, and even if you weren’t a fan of it, I think the two movies play together much better than they play apart. Oh, and did I mention you get to see Rose Byrne and Jocelin Donahue on the big screen? Well worth price of admission. That Patrick Wilson’s nothing to shake a stick at, either.
This week’s new releases offer everything from giant monsters to Spielberg aliens to ass-kicking martial artists and even an ash-eating medical student. Do we have your interest?
Here’s all the new genre movies that released on Friday, June 12, 2026!
These aren’t all HORROR movies, but we want you to be aware of them all the same…
Norwegian creature feature Kraken is now available on Digital.
The film was also unleashed in select theaters. Check your local listings.
In the monster movie Kraken, “unnatural behavior in wild salmon, followed by inexplicable deaths in Norway’s deepest fjord, points to the mythical Kraken. The ancient, multi-armed monster has awakened, ready to crush everything that moves or makes a sound.”
Pål Øie (The Tunnel) directs Samuel Goldwyn Films’ Kraken from a script by Vilde Eide, Kjersti Jelen Rasmussen, and Natasha Arthur. Sara Khorami, Mikkel Bratt Silset, Øyvind Brandtzæg, Jenny Evensen, Ingvild Holthe Bygdnes, Jon Erik Myre, Hans Morten Hansen, Steinar Klouman Hallert, and Filip Bargee Ramberg star.
An all girls trip into the desert for escapism fun instead implodes in violence in the revenge thriller Find Your Friends, now streaming only on Shudder.
In the film, “Amber and her four best friends flee Los Angeles for a girls’ trip in Joshua Tree, only to find themselves unwelcome in a desert town simmering with quiet hostility. As isolation sets in and encounters with aggressive locals grow more threatening, festering resentments within the group begin to surface.
“What begins as fun and reckless escape spirals into a violent struggle for control and survival, as past wounds and present dangers collide in a night that turns their trip into a nightmare.”
Bella Thorne (The Babysitter), Chloe Cherry (“Euphoria”), Helena Howard (I Saw the TV Glow), Sophia Ali (Uncharted), Zion Moreno (“Gossip Girl”), and Chris Bauer (“True Blood”) star in the feature debut by writer/director Izabel Pakzad.
Steven Spielberg is more sure today than he was when he made Close Encounters and ET that aliens are very real, and with Disclosure Day, he aims to make you a believer too.
Okay so it’s not a horror movie, but the sci-fi blockbuster is now playing in theaters.
The vague synopsis for Disclosure Day reads: “If you found out we weren’t alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? This summer, the truth belongs to seven billion people. We are coming close to Disclosure Day.”
The film stars SAG winner and Oscar® nominee Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer, A Quiet Place), Emmy and Golden Globe winner Josh O’Connor (Challengers, The Crown), Oscar® winner Colin Firth (The King’s Speech, Kingsman franchise), Eve Hewson (Bad Sisters, The Perfect Couple) and two-time Oscar® nominee Colman Domingo (Sing Sing, Rustin).
Based on a story by Spielberg, the screenplay is by David Koepp, whose previous work with Spielberg includes the scripts for Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, War of the Worlds and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Combined, those films earned more than $3 billion worldwide. Koepp also wrote the script for Jurassic World Rebirth.
Steven Spielberg is of course no stranger to extraterrestrial encounters, directing two of the greatest alien movies of all time: Close Encounters of the Third Kind in 1977 and E.T. in 1982. It’s an arena he returned to in 2005, directing an adaptation of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds.
Here in 2026, Steven Spielberg sees hope in the existence of aliens. He notes in the final trailer for Disclosure Day, “How will disclosure change us? I believe for the better.”
Another movie that’s not a horror movie but worth mentioning here is the violent martial arts revenge thriller The Furious, which is now playing in theaters from Lionsgate.
Xie Miao (The New Legend of Shaolin) and Joe Taslim (Mortal Kombat) star.
After his daughter is kidnapped by a criminal network and he receives no help from the corrupt police, Wang Wei sets out on a rampage to find her himself.
His only ally is Navin, a relentless journalist whose wife has mysteriously disappeared. Fueled by a furious vengeance, the unlikely duo ruthlessly fights against the kidnappers.
Kenji Tanigaki (Enter the Fat Dragon) directs from a script by Mak Tin Shu (Kung Fu Jungle), Lei Zhilong, Shum Kwan Sin (Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In), and Frank Hui.
A disturbing weight loss craze involving human ashes opens up a haunting world of hurt for a young woman in Saccharine, which is now available on Digital outlets at home.
From writer/director Natalie Erika James (Relic, Apartment 7A), the Australian supernatural body horror film follows lovelorn medical student Hana, who becomes terrorized by a sinister force after taking part in an obscure weight loss craze: eating human ashes.
Midori Francis (“Grey’s Anatomy”), Danielle Macdonald (Patti Cake$), and Madeleine Madden (“The Wheel of Time”) star in Natalie Erika James’ latest nightmare.
From directors Arturo Ambriz and Roy Ambriz, I Am Frankelda is billed as the first ever full length stop motion movie from Mexico, and it’s now streaming on Netflix.
The history-making stop-motion film is a dark fantasy set in a world of monsters.
Here’s the synopsis: “In 19th-century Mexico, Frankelda is a gifted writer whose dark tales are ignored and dismissed. Forced to suppress her voice, she refuses to give up, even as many try to silence her. But when she is thrust into her subconscious, the very monsters she created come to life.
“Guided by Herneval, a tormented prince trapped between dreams and nightmares, she must restore balance between fiction and reality before both realms collapse. Meanwhile, the sinister writer Procustes and his conspirators plot to seize control. As Frankelda and Herneval grow closer, their bond becomes both a strength and a curse.
“To rewrite their fate, she must confront a love that defies existence and reclaim her power as a storyteller—before dark forces consume her imagination and reveal horrors beyond her creation.”
The directors said in a joint statement, “As brothers, we grew up inventing worlds together, drawing, playing, imagining. Over time we understood that fictional characters were not only companions but guides. Sometimes they felt closer than the people around us. They provided us courage, wisdom, and solace. We believe fiction is not an escape from reality but a way of understanding it. A way of converting truth into palatable chunks. I Am Frankelda comes from a lifelong love of storytelling.”
Mireya Mendoza, Arturo Mercado Jr., and Luis Leonardo Suarez lead the voice cast.
Meagan Navarro writes in her review for Bloody Disgusting, “Mexico’s first stop-motion animated feature is a macabre beauty.” Meagan also notes in her review, “I Am Frankelda is a gothic fantasy feature whose boundless creativity is matched by its ambition.”
The lines of reality and delusion blur in Time of Death, now available on Digital.
Michael Kelly (“The Penguin,” Dawn of the Dead 2004) stars with Kevin Pollak (End of Days), Mena Suvari (Vampires of the Velvet Lounge), and Dennis Haysbert (Send Help).
In the horror-thriller, “When a prisoner vanishes without a trace, Detective Frank Morley (Michael Kelly) is sent to a decaying prison on the verge of shutdown. What begins as a routine investigation quickly spirals into a dangerous search for answers.”
Will Wernick (Escape Room 2017, Follow Me) directs from a script by Jason Rosen. They also produce alongside Kelly Delson, Jeff Delson, and Kyle David Crosby.
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