Paranormal Activity

A couple decide to document their nights while they sleep, after they hear strange noises that they believe to be a haunting.

I respect this film, for the fact that it was shot for less than 20,000, had absolutely no marketing campaign and has become a huge success based on word of mouth and the audience demanding to see it. If only other studios would follow suit and listen to people demanding to see movies they want to see, maybe there wouldn't be so much crap out there.

Paranormal Activity is shot like Cloverfield, Blair Witch Project, REC, Cannibal Holocaust, etc. If any of those films gave you motion sickness, you might want to skip this one. Half the film is shot while they sleep, so the film is on a tri-pod, the other half is them walking around with it. So if you've never been a fan of those films, skip this one. Second, the film is not as scary as people make it out to be. Instead, it is one creepy and suspenseful film, that seeing in a theatre, only heightened my enjoyment of it.

The audience I went with, all had a collective "Oh My God". I could hear it every time something creepy happened. You could literally feel everyone in the theatre holding their breath every time they went to sleep. Again, if you are the type of person who wants to watch a film and not hear a peep out of anyone else, skip this film.

Now the film itself, shot in one week, small (very small) budget and every penny of it went towards the special effects. The special effects are what sell the film, if you don't buy them, the film will not creep you out. They looked real and impressive enough to push the film into a successful goal, which is to scare people. If you are already afraid of the dark, this film will not help you. Every creek, thump, noise you hear in your house will now have you thinking twice.

Less is more, The Blair Witch Project uses this, as does Paranormal Activity. The two leads, are haunted by a demon, one we never see, only hear. Whenever you go into a horror film, as a kid you would close your eyes in fear. Big mistake, because it's the ears you need to be covering. The sound is what makes you jump, hear nothing, fear nothing. The sound design behind this film is what is scary people, accompanied by the visuals (memorable scenes with the powder and bed sheets).

As the film progresses, the haunting gets worse. I don't want to give anything away, and I urge you to not watch the trailer. I watched the trailer and was waiting for those things to happen, it took away from the general fear. Not knowing what to expect will make this film that much better, that much creepier and that much more entertaining. I didn't expect it to be as funny as it was either, the lead male had some comic relief dialogue, the ease the tension.

The couple are believable, the hand held camera angle works here and the fear will set in. I applaud Paranormal Activity, for not only becoming an unheard of success, but for being one of the creepiest films I've ever seen.

Bravo.

Did the hype kill the movie? I watch a lot of horror movies and normally I would really have liked this one. In the endless stream of b-movies and even expensive crap, this movie really stands out. Paranormal Acivity is a scary and straightforward movie and it isn't boring. But of course there is the hype. After I heard this was the scariest movie ever, expectations evidently went up. Eventually resulting in a slight disappointment. This movie would have been much scarier, creepier if I hadn't had any expectations, if I hadn't read any reviews. I guess Public Enemy was right about the Hype.

The movie is scary indeed. After watching Paranormal Activity I noticed that the nightly sounds of my 200 years old house were louder and creepier than ever. But I did not let my good night's sleep for it.

The acting was good but sometimes slightly overdone, which made it difficult for me to connect with the characters. I understand that Micah, the bf, had to be annoying, the character was written that way. But their is something wrong if you start imagining in the middle of the movie gruesome ways he could die. The movie should have been scarier if I had had more empathy for the characters.

Anayway I enjoyed watching this film, but the hype made me expect more.

I watched this movie in the cinemas since i wanted the full effect and to be horrified like never before as the youtubevideos suggests. The movie was so hyped i hoped it to be that scary movie I've been waiting for since my experience with Rec.

The setup is a house, two people in it and a camera. Starts off promising with fairly good acting. It almost seems they are a couple in real life, that would be my guess. Micah(Micah) does what you would expect from a boyfriend after his girlfriend tells him she hears noises and sees things after midnight - he sets up a camera in the house and starts taunting. As texts in the middle of the screen shows the process, day1..day12 etc. things escalates from day to day. People in the audience are getting nervous and i feel the tension rising and building up my expectations. However the movie is never really kicking off and nothing is ever happening, its like Scream without the guy with the knife. Its like your lover giving you a lapdance and leaving in the middle of the show. Its like i pay 15bucks to get scared but i get angry instead. The whole movie felt like the first 30 minutes of a good horror movie, then all the sudden texts start running down the screen and the cinema is lit up - the movie is actually ending after 30 min? oh well my clock tells me I've been sitting here for 1½ hours.

Taking the budget into consideration i would say its a great horror movie. I guess i was just expecting something more frightening. Want to know how the audience was reacting? They reacted like me, laughing and complaining when walking out.

I could almost promise you the hype is mostly made up and the videos you can watch online are promotion and bullshit. I cant imagine anyone leaving the cinema or getting freaked out. OK, maybe if they are bored and leave or angry and freaked out.

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY is THE most popular movie of the year and will ultimately be regarded as one of the best horror movies of all time. Therefore, PA has warranted a HUGE debate on whether it sucks or not.

Under this pretense, I have divided this review into 3 sections: 1 for the things in the movie that work, 1 for the things that don't, and 1 for the summation.

******THE GOOD******************************

1. Originality - not a cheap knockoff or a member of Hollywood's non-stop horror remake/reboot wave. That is a game winner right there! Comparable to the Blair Witch Project, PA has received a lot of flack as being a rip off of BWP. Taken into consideration, the film's only real similarity to BWP is the use of home camera/1st person footage, and non-professionals inducing reactions from the supernatural world. That said, you have to answer yourself a question: Would you rather see another Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake, or a completely original off-BWP type film?

2. Suspense and Tension - the film does not rely on cheap scares and loud noises deafening you to induce the desire reaction of fear. Nor does it have the smallest fraction of gore/sex/exploitation compared to most of today's horror movies. If you prefer horror movies that usually don't stick with you and follow you out of the theater, then skip it by all means. The film gives you a few inches, and leaves your imagination to finish the mile.

A suggestion on viewing the film: If you want to get the most out of Paranormal Activity, then DO NOT see it in the local theater on a Friday night. We all know what happens when you are in a theater with middle and high school kids during a horror movie. To fully immerse yourself in the movie, see it with your significant other, by yourself, or with just a couple of friends at a time when the theater is the least crowded. Try to see it at night, or at home in the dark. This film invades the sanctity of one's bedroom, and the old tactic of pulling the covers over your head doesn't work.

3. Special Effects - even on a small budget, the film provides some very impacting scenery. Some effects are blatantly obvious, and some of the best effects are actually the most subtle.

4. Acting - the movie is well acted considering it is full of unknowns. The characters are not obnoxious like most horror movie protagonists. They appear genuine and very convincing in most of the film. But in some scenes, not so much. More below.

5. Plot - there is a pleasant (oxymoron) surprise with the direction the film went regarding the source of the phenomena. It's not your typical ghost or haunted house story. I will not embellish on this as it will spoil the movie for those who haven't or are deciding to see the movie.

******THE NOT SO GOOD***********************

1. Writing - this is actually a 50/50 split. The 'supernatural' scenes are very convincing considering the subject matter, whether scripted or improvised. However, the dialog and character motivation/action during the 'down time' is unrealistic at times. This is a large complaint by those who didn't like the movie. Although the film is a large departure from teen filled slasher movies, the characters at times seem to be just as brainless as the teens getting whacked by Jason. There is a lot of "WHY DIDN'T THEY JUST....?" scenes in the movie.

2. Acting - like the writing, the acting seems to suffer in the 'down time'. Fortunately, during the important (scary) scenes, the acting is spot-on, and very convincing. However, you might be taken out of the movie when the protagonists are interacting with each other during the in-between scenes, and the authenticity of their relationship is questionable in some parts.

3. Scenery - granted that the whole movie is filmed in or on the characters' house, the static viewpoint of the camera gets a little boring. With all the phenomena going on, it would have been refreshing to see things from a different angle, especially in the bedroom. Fortunately, this doesn't hinder the movie, just a minor complaint.

******AS A HORROR FAN***********************

Follow the suggestions above regarding with who, where and how to watch the movie. Seen under the right circumstances, and with the right state of mind, the film can be very effective, and having you looking over your shoulder when you turn out all the lights in the house, and crawl into bed. For this reason, I fully endorse this movie as a new member of the horror family. Fresh and original, the movie deserves all of the attention it is getting.

Let this be a glaring message to Hollywood that originality is still the craved for in the movie industry. Horror fans have grown tired of having their favorite classics butchered and pointlessly remade. Directors and producers do not deserve revenue for just upping the violence and sexual gratification of old horror movies.

The film's success is also a great indication that as a population, movie goers respond better to thought provocative subjects than mindless in-your-face cannon fodder. It relieves me to some degree to see that tension-fear based horror movies still have the chance to take the cake. Especially on such a small budget.

Well Done, producers, directors, and actors. 8/10

This movie has the right amount of scares all through the movie it keeps you on the edge of your seat trying to figure out what's going on. I'm not too sure about the ending though, but the whole movie had enough scares and suspense. I think another ending would have been better , I'll still recommend it.