When the true greats of the genre weren't releasing the likes of Halloween or A Nightmare on Elm Street, they were making lesser known and more ridiculous works of horror that have only ever really been picked up by hardcore enthusiasts. Despite being nowhere near as iconic or well-received as their best efforts, these films were still made with a great deal of creativity and often with same level of passion. I'm talking about titles such as Deadly Blessing or Ghosts of Mars. That seems to be the style of movie James Wan was going for here. It's evident that the Insidious director made this one just to have some fun and is clearly having an absolute blast with his crazy premise, wild camera angles, playful soundtrack (which occasionally calls to mind Saw), and ludicrous gory action. The results are one of the most insane things I've ever seen and it is AWESOME! Which you wouldn't guess right away due to what a slow start it gets off to. Malignant is actually kind of boring at first and had trouble maintaining my attention early on. Its characters, setup, and even worse the scares feel cliché and predictable. It doesn't take too long for things to get interesting with its mystery though, and when the reveals start coming it explodes into a delightfully unhinged rollercoaster of madness that left me gawking at the screen in disbelief and ecstasy. Wan's willingness to fully embrace the illogical and maybe even dumb nature of the material means this will never get the same level of respect as his two Conjuring entries. Yet, it will always have a place in the hearts of the real horror devotees, likely showing up on countless lists of underappreciated gems on websites like Bloody Disgusting in the future, and further cements his legacy as the Wes Craven/John Carpenter of this generation.