Kicking off the Halloween season prematurely on Friday, Sept. 13, “Insidious: Chapter 2” picks up right where the original left off when it hit theaters two years ago.

The Lambert family is dealing with the death of Elise Rainer (Lin Shaye), who was mysteriously killed upon returning Josh (Patrick Wilson) and Renai Lambert’s son, Dalton (Ty Simpkins), from the spirit world known as The Further.

But wait, there’s more.

Anyone who saw the first film knows that Josh also went into The Further to find his son and returned with another evil spirit attached to him. Now, Josh is acting strangely as this new entity takes control of his body while the Lamberts take temporary shelter in Josh’s mother’s house during the police’s investigation at their home.

Things creak, move on their own, the piano faintly plays, voices come from the baby monitor, ya know, all the same gimmicks used in the original film to startle and scare the audience.

Truly, nothing here is as frightening and tense as the original. In fact, the comedy seems amped up more so than anything, which for me, makes any horror flick far less horrific.

Eventually, Josh’s mother, Lorraine Lambert (Barbara Hershey), and Renai realize an evil spirit is still haunting the family and seek the help of Elise’s supernatural investigative partner, Carl (Steve Coulter).

Taking a look back at Renai’s first consultation with Elise and Carl when Josh was just a child, the whole gang discovers exactly why the Lambert family seems to be a target for evil spirits.

The connections made between the first and the second films are interesting in the way everything is weaved together, but anyone looking for a serious scare should look elsewhere.

Oh, but if you do enjoy this latest installment, you’ll be happy to know that the ending sets up for an inevitable Chapter 3 because as long as the money keeps flowing in, Hollywood is quick to take out the originality and repeat what works. “Insidious: Chapter 2” already took in $20 million on Friday alone.

Will you be seeing “Insidious: Chapter 2,” or will you wait for something scarier a little closer to Halloween? Leave your comments below!

Andrea’s rating: C-