PLOT: A husband and wife begin filming their every move when strange events occur in their bedroom at night. Soon enough, it becomes obvious that a supernatural being has its eyes on the couple… or just one of them in particular.
NOTE: This review is based on a version of PARANORMAL ACTIVITY I saw a year ago. The theatrical version may differ.
REVIEW: A year ago, when PARANORMAL ACTIVITY was making a name for itself around the festival circuit (it only recently stopped making the rounds and is ready for release), I got my greasy little hands on a copy of the flick. Dropped right into my lap, I swear. So without the benefit of knowing too much about it, I dove into the thriller with an open mind and a willingness to be scared… And I sorta was…
PARANORMAL ACTIVITY is a nifty chiller that is far more convincing and eerie than 100 “Ghost Hunters” episodes put together (although that’s not hard to do), but what it really owes a debt to is, obviously, THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, not just because of the POV technique but the pacing, ambience and even the closing moments, are reminiscent of the 1999 ghost story. As is the currently mounting hype, which I think can only hurt the film. When I saw it, it was just some indie that not many knew about. Now, it’s gaining this absurd reputation for being “truly terrifying”, and I hope that when people finally see it and discover it’s not, they don’t hold that against it, because this is really more of a slow burn than a smack across the face. Just like BLAIR WITCH.
Technically, it’s crude, but that’s the point. These are just two people videotaping themselves in their house (mostly it’s just “Michah”, the frequently obnoxious man of the house, doing the taping). The performances are natural-ish (if not always completely realistic), and the story moves along at a steady, if patient, pace. (People expecting some scare-a-minute haunted house movie are going to be twiddling their thumbs a lot.) When PARANORMAL ACTIVITY really comes alive is during its night scenes (the couple record the activity in their bedroom while they sleep), which definitely elicit some goosebumps. You’ll find yourself searching the screen intently, peering for clues, while holding onto your seat, and though you may not always be satisfied with what you see – or don’t see – you’ll probably have a lot of fun looking.
Is it a great experience? No. But with reasonable expectations, you can do a whole lot worse than PARANORMAL ACTIVITY when seeking out a scary night at the movies. Nowadays, when the output of horror flicks is rather godawful, we shouldn’t ignore someone (in this case, director Oren Peli) who really wants to creep us out.
3 out of 4
The comment section exists to allow readers to discuss the article constructively and respectfully, focused on the topic at hand.
What’s Not Allowed