History YMMV / Insidious

** The whole plot point about [[spoiler: Josh being suspected of Elise's murder]] seems like it is going to play a major role at the beginning of the second movie, only to be quickly dropped and never brought up again.
*** Not completely. A little later in the film, Renai receives a phone call from the detective that interviewed her to let her know that [[spoiler: the DNA tests showed it wasn't Josh that killed Elise. It was Josh's body that strangled Elise, yet the DNA provided on the wounds are not Josh's. So this is there to show just how much reach Parker Crane has, actually being able to ''change his host's fingerprints''.]]

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Renai in ''The Red Door''. After Josh and Dalton were made to forget the events of the first two films, she spent the next decade hiding the truth from Josh and Dalton, [[EmptyShell even though it left Josh in a depressed state]] and caused a rift between him and Dalton. She did nothing to help Josh or fix the family, and eventually divorced him due to the stress, even then not giving the truth. When Josh confronts her about this, [[NeverMyFault she even has the gall to get angry at ''Josh'' for putting her through something he had no control over]], and very clearly puts most of the blame on him for why their family fell apart. By the end, it's made clear that all of this [[CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot could have been avoided if Renai just told Josh and Dalton the truth when things started going bad.]]

** ''The Last Key'': [[BigBad KeyFace]], aka the Key Bearer or the Man with the Keys, is a [[OurDemonsAreDifferent vicious spirit]] from [[AlienGeometries the Further]], seeking to open all its gates. Tricking a young Elise into releasing him in her home, [=KeyFace=] immediately strangled her mother to death before possessing Elise’s father, [[AbusiveParents Gerald]]. Feeding off the pain and hatred from Gerald’s abuse, [=KeyFace=] would have Gerald kidnap and torture several women in his house for months, before killing them. Decades after Gerald's death, [=KeyFace=] would haunt the home's new owner into continuing Gerald’s crimes. Attacking Elise's niece, Melissa, [=KeyFace=] forces her into a coma and takes her to the Further, silencing her screams. It’s revealed he keeps the souls of his victims, including Gerald and Ted, in a prison of his to [[AndIMustScream torment them continuously]]. When Elise and her other niece, Imogen, come to Melissa’s rescue, [=KeyFace=] tries to coerce Elise into beating her father's soul for his past abuse, and continue feeding off their hatred. Failing that, he attempts to kill Melissa’s physical body out of spite.

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Renai in ''The Red Door''. After Josh and Dalton were made to forget the events of the first two films, she spent the next decade hiding the truth from Josh and Dalton, [[EmptyShell even though it left Josh in a depressed state]] and caused a rift between him and Dalton. She did nothing to help Josh or fix the family, and eventually divorced him due to the stress, even then not giving the truth. When Josh confronts her about this, [[NeverMyFault she even has the gall to get angry at 'Josh' for putting her through something he had no control over]], and very clearly puts most of the blame on him for why their family fell apart. By the end, it's made clear that all of this [[CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot could have been avoided if Renai just told Josh and Dalton the truth when things started going bad.]]

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Renai in ''The Red Door''. After Josh and Dalton were made to forget the events of the first two films, she spent the next decade hiding the truth from Josh and Dalton, [[EmptyShell even though it left Josh in a depressed state]] and caused a rift between him and Dalton. She did nothing to help Josh or fix the family, and eventually divorced him due to the stress, even then not giving the truth. When Josh confronts her about this, [[NeverMyFault she even has the gall to get angry at ''Josh'' for putting her through something he had no control over]], and very clearly puts most of the blame on him for why their family fell apart. By the end, it's made clear that all of this [[CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot could have been avoided if Renai just told Josh and Dalton the truth when things started going bad.]]

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Renai in ''The Red Door''. After Josh and Dalton were made to forget the events of the first two films, she spent the next decade hiding the truth from Josh and Dalton, [[EmptyShell even though it left Josh in a depressed state]] and caused a rift between him and Dalton. She did nothing to help Josh or fix the family, and eventually divorced him due to the stress, even then not giving the truth. When Josh confronts her about this, [[NeverMyFault she even has the gall to get angry at <i>Josh</i> for putting her through something he had no control over]], and very clearly puts most of the blame on him for why their family fell apart. By the end, it's made clear that all of this [[CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot could have been avoided if Renai just told Josh and Dalton the truth when things started going bad.]]

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Renai in ''The Red Door''. After Josh and Dalton were made to forget the events of the first two films, she spent the next decade hiding the truth from Josh and Dalton, [[EmptyShell even though it left Josh in a depressed state]] and caused a rift between him and Dalton. She did nothing to help Josh or fix the family, and eventually divorced him due to the stress, even then not giving the truth. When Josh confronts her about this, [[NeverMyFault she even has the gall to get angry at ''Josh'' for putting her through something he had no control over]], and very clearly puts most of the blame on him for why their family fell apart. By the end, it's made clear that all of this [[CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot could have been avoided if Renai just told Josh and Dalton the truth when things started going bad.]]

** Despite some critiques due to TooDumbToLive moments, Josh as well. He's a {{Deconstruction}} of the typical horror movie father: He's shown as very worried about what's wrong with his son, and when it comes to the supernatural aspects, he obviously dismisses them. But when he realizes they are true, he's willing to go with it, mainly because he wants to see his son again. The revelation that [[spoiler: Parker Cane was constantly following him all his life, and then trapping him in the Further]] makes him more of a Woobie.

* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Renai in ''The Red Door''. After Josh and Dalton were made to forget the events of the first two films, she spent the next decade hiding the truth from Josh and Dalton, [[EmptyShell even though it left Josh in a depressed state]] and caused a rift between him and Dalton. She did nothing to help Josh or fix the family, and eventually divorced him due to the stress, even then not giving the truth. When Josh confronts her about this, [[NeverMyFault she even has the gall to get angry at ''Josh'' for putting her through something he had no control over]], and very clearly puts most of the blame on him for why their family fell apart. By the end, it's made clear that all of this [[PoorCommunicationSkills could have been avoided if Renai just told Josh and Dalton the truth when things started going bad.]]

** ''Chapter 3'': The mysterious, enigmatic ghost simply known as [[BigBad The Man Who Can't Breathe]], or the [[VaderBreath Wheezing Demon]], is a vengeful, violent spirit seeking not to regain life like other spirits, but rather to trap as many people with him as possible by terrorizing them, [[YourSoulIsMine stealing their souls away]], and [[DrivenToSuicide driving victims to suicide]] so that he may keep them in the afterlife as his own [[FateWorseThanDeath pets]]. He does this to protagonist Quinn, luring her into the path of an incoming car, which strikes her and shatters her legs. Trapped in her room and unable to escape, Quinn is attacked by The Man, who further injures her before attacking her soul. When good-hearted psychic Elise Rainer becomes involved, the Man stalks and attacks her in her own home. He proceeds to possess Quinn and attack those trying to help her (including her own father) with a wrench, further injuring Quinn's body. The heroes manage to restrain her as Elise travels into the Further to confront the Man, where he changes form into her deceased husband Jack to persuade her to [[TogetherInDeath take her own life so they may be together again]].

* HarsherInHindsight: Dalton's predicament of being TrappedOnTheAstralPlane is similar to the one that Henry Townsend finds himself in during ''VideoGame/SilentHill4TheRoom''. Except, Dalton desperately needs outside help to wake up. He is also too terrified to fight back against the ghosts and demons, and potentially return to his body. Both Henry and Dalton also find themselves trapped in a twisted version of their homes.

* IronWoobie: Elise, let's face it. [[spoiler: She dies in the first film and yet takes it with stride, even telling Josh it isn't his fault she's now dead and telling Carl he did what he could to help the Lambert family. The third film takes it UpToEleven to reveal she wasn't always the CoolOldLady that she was, showing her as a pretty somber woman dealing with the loss of her husband, only to go back onto the supernatural wagon when she needed to help Quinn and her family. Not bad for a woman who's still helping ''even in death'']]. And that's not ''even'' to the fact [[spoiler: she was emotionally and physically abuse by a father who didn't understand her powers, and was tricked by a spirit into allowing it free only for it to kill her mother]].

* SugarWiki/FunnyMoments: Many with Specs and Tucker. In ''Chapter 2'', the two of them encounter a spectre of Parker Crane as a child while dressed as a girl. He quietly warns them that about his mother, saying, "if she sees you [in the room], she'll make me kill you." [[GenreSavvy They simply turn around and briskly walk out.]]

** The demon himself can be this, due in no small part to his more-than-passing resemblance to [[Film/ThePhantomMenace Darth Maul]] in a bad toupee.
** Also, the demon guarding the door to the Red-Faced Demon's lair isn't so bad once you get a pep talk, and unleash a ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' move on him.
*** He's not all that scary in the first place, seeing as he's basically just some buff dude with a lot of makeup on and both of his most significant scenes in either movie end with him getting his ass kicked, bringing to mind a WWE Heel Jobber.

* CrazyAwesome and CreepyAwesome: '''Elise'''. She's 100 pounds of creepy and awesome in a 10 pound bag.

* HarsherInHindsight: Dalton's predicament trapped in an AstralPlane is similar to the one that Henry Townsend finds himself in during ''VideoGame/SilentHill4TheRoom''. Except, Dalton desperately needs outside help to wake up. He is also too terrified to fight back against the ghosts and demons, and return to his body. Both Henry and Dalton also find themselves trapped in a twisted otherworld version of their homes.

* HarsherInHindsight: Dalton's predicament [[spoiler:trapped in an AstralPlane]] is similar to the one that Henry Townsend finds himself in during ''VideoGame/SilentHill4TheRoom''. Except, Dalton desperately needs outside help to wake up. [[spoiler:He is also too terrified to fight back against the ghosts and demons, and return to his body. Both characters also find themselves trapped in a twisted otherworld version of their homes.]]

* HarsherInHindsight: Dalton's predicament [[spoiler:trapped in an AstralPlane]] is similar to the one that Henry Townsend finds himself in during ''VideoGame/SilentHill4TheRoom''. Except, Dalton desperately needs outside help to wake up. [[spoiler:he is also too terrified to fight back against the ghosts and demons, and return to his body]].

* HarsherInHindsight: Dalton's predicament [[spoiler:trapped in an AstralPlane]] is similar to the one that Henry Townsend finds himself in during ''VideoGame/SilentHill4TheRoom''. Except, Dalton needs outside help to wake up. [[spoiler:he is also too terrified to fight back against the ghosts and demons, and return to his body]].

* HarsherInHindsight: Dalton's predicament [[spoiler:trapped in an AstralPlane]] is similar to the one that Henry Townsend finds himself in during ''VideoGame/SilentHill4TheRoom''. Except, Dalton can't fight back and needs outside help to wake up.

** One of the film's big scary moments is supposed to be when Josh discovers Dalton imprisoned in the Further with the demon, but since the demon has a penchant for listening to Tiny Tim, his infernal lair looks like the set of a Meatloaf video, and he's first properly shown cheerfully sharpening his claws while listening to his favorite tune.

* FirstInstallmentWins: The original is arguably the premier movie of the series, kicking off the series with a classic haunted house story but with a twist in that it's not the house itself that's drawing in ghosts. Plus, the father refreshingly averts the SupernaturalProofFather trope and doesn't mess around with his family's safety when they're in jeopardy, even moving the family to a new home.