Paranormal Activity

[jasonmego1277]

Is this another coming of The Blair Witch having Viral marketing , and then success in theatres ?

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[toys2cool]

saw the previews today and friend told me it's freakin awesome

[jasonmego1277]

saw the previews today and friend told me it's freakin awesome

That is what I am hearing , but it's so limited to a midnight showing right now. My wife cannot handle scary movies , but I am going to drag her to see this ...... I may have to bribe her with seeing some sappy film in return. LOL ! However I am not sure if I will be successful . She was pregnant when I dragged her to the remake of the Omen and her Hormones all outta whack she nearly had a nervous breakdown she was so scared. LOL. I felt really bad about that even though I found it funny that was soooo scary for her.

[darklord1967]

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****SPOILERS**** SPOILERS*****SPOILERS***** SPOILERS*****


Alright, I just got back from a sold-out screening of the new film Paranormal Activity, and I felt the need to write and provide my feedback:

First off, let me say this: I was one of the many people who had heard all the advance buzz leading up to the release of 1999's The Blair Witch Project, and lined up on opening night to catch a screening here in NYC.

On that picture, I was horribly, horribly, HORRIBLY disappointed with how painfully BORING that film was. I found absolutley NOTHING frightening about three idiot kids lost in the woods, yelling at each other over who is at fault over their predicament. And the "pay-off" end of that film delivers far too little, far too late.

But I digress.

I only mention "The Blair Witch Project" because of the obvious comparisons being made now between that film and "Paranormal Activity", vis-a-vi the very low budgets, the very low-tech POV shooting styles, the minimal casts of actors, the single-location settings, etc.

Ultimately that is where the similarities between these two films end.

Paranormal Activity is FAR AND AWAY one of the most unsettling, harrowing, and downright frightening films I've seen in a very, very long time. It is everything that The Amityville Horror (both productions), and so many other haunted house films should have been and yet almost never succeeded in being.

As someone who has a proclivity to have a healthy respect (and fear) for the world of the paranormal, I am admittedly the perfect candidate for a film of this nature.

This is similar to the myriad of folks that found Blair Witch utterly terrifying because of their personal experiences with "camping out" in the woods (which is something I've never done nor care to).

For me, though, the difference is that the unsettling experiences associated with camp outs (strange marauding threats in the dark, ghost stories told around a campfire etc.) are episodes shared only by some. They are therefore, a limited reference to have.

But we ALL spend time in our own homes, (living rooms, bedrooms, bathrooms etc.). For me, the notion of NOT BEING SAFE IN YOUR OWN FAMILIAR HOME due to the antics of a vicious spirit is creepier than I can adequately express.

The idea of being defenseless against an unseen demonic force when you are at your most vulnerable (while you sleep) absolutely makes my skin crawl.

The mere suggestion that such a vile, angry, entity can take control of a person's physical body and make them do the most unsettlingly bizzare things in the middle of the night... brrrrrrrr!

In the link posted by jasonmego1277, the reviewer speaks of this film's "... achingly slow buildup..." which "...is a test not just of an audience's patience, but of the power of hype..." surrounding this film.

I could not disagree more.

While the build-up of this film is slow, it is also steady, unrelenting, un-nerving and very tense. We are introduced to Micah and his girlfriend Katie (played earnestly and realistically by Micah Sloat and Katie Featherston respectively) living in a beautiful suburban home in San Diego. Almost immediately, it is established that the camera shooting the very footage we are watching has been purchased by Micah to hopefully record the minor episodes of paranormal activity that they suspect has been going on in their home... particularly during the hours that they sleep.

They invite a psychic / paranormal investigator (played by Mark Fredrichs) to their home to advise them on how to deal with their problem. But after a careful interview with the couple, the man advises them to reach out to a demonologist, explaining that he is not prepared to be of much assistance. When Micah jokingly suggests that perhaps he should get a ouija board to communicate with the spirit and ask it what its intentions are, the psychic strongly advises him against this. He explains that such an act would only serve as an invitation to this dangerous entity. He further clarifies that a demon is a spiritual representation of something angry and vile that has NEVER taken human form. This is very different from a "ghost" which is the residual energy of a human being who once lived but has departed. Also, the psychic is careful to caution them that demons thrive on negative energy (Ie: anger, fear, aggression). It literally makes them stronger.

These "build-ups" (as I've described them) form the very foundations for the scares that come later in the film. By the time Micah and Katie invite the psychic investigator back to their home (out of desperation), he enters the house and proceeds no further than the entry foyer, saying that his own presence will only serve to further anger the thing living there, and then he makes a VERY hasty exit.

Boy was he right. The subsequent manifestations of this demon upon these two hapless people are some of the creepiest stuff I've seen on film.

For me, what works so well about the scares in this film is that they are NOT flashy, NOT cgi, NOT high-tech. They are, instead, very simple psychological moments that will absolutely send a chill up your back!

There is something paralyzingly terrifying about some of the simple, innocuous stuff that is captured by the running camera while these two people sleep in their bed!

Night after night, it is always the same: A simple, night-vision, ultra-wide shot of Micah and Katie's bedroom. We can see them asleep in their bed, the open door of their room, and a portion of the darkened hallway beyond.

At first, the stuff recorded by the camera is minimal: The open bedroom door being jarred slightly by an unseen force.

By the time we reach the film's climax, the stuff seen occurring out in the hall and inside these people's bedroom, again, while they sleep, nearly made me crap my pants.

It all culminates in a shocking final scene that will likely have people talking about this film for a while... not to mention having them nervous about turning off the lights in their own home.

Do yourself a favor: DO NOT wait to see this film on cable or on DVD. Do not buy a cheesy bootleg disc. Go to a movie theater and see this film properly.

The scares designed into this film work best when viewed with an audience that is screaming along with you. This film is most effective when you are viewing it on a screen that is much bigger than you, and makes you feel small, insignificant, vulnerable, and NOT in control.

Also (here comes a rant). Get your darn refreshments and / or go to the bathroom, before this movie starts... for God sakes!!

By doing this simple thing:

A) You won't miss important stuff by headin' off to the crapper during a wrong moment!

And

B) You won't disturb other people's deep psychological involvement in this stylish thriller of a film as you walk through the seating row excusing yourself like an idiot. God I hate that! I pay my $12.50 to see a film, NOT to have someone's BUTT in my face as they step on my toes!!

It's shocking to me how many people get up to go do STUPID, INANE stuff during a movie. Have attention spans have dropped so dramatically in our culture that people can't sit still for two friggin' hours and just watch a film?!!! Incredible! It's like being with 5 year olds.

Okay. End of rant.

See Paranormal Activity. The haunted house movie is BACK... big-time!


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[darklord1967]

My wife cannot handle scary movies , but I am going to drag her to see this.... She was pregnant when I dragged her to the remake of the Omen and her Hormones all outta whack she nearly had a nervous breakdown she was so scared. LOL.

Dude, SERIOUSLY... if your wife was terrified by The OMEN re-make, you need to really, REALLY think hard about wether or not you should drag her to see "Paranormal Activity".

You could do some serious damage to her. I'm not kidding. There is stuff in this movie that just... stays with you... long after you leave the theater.


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[jasonmego1277]

Dude, SERIOUSLY... if your wife was terrified by The OMEN re-make, you need to really, REALLY think hard about wether or not you should drag her to see "Paranormal Activity".

You could do some serious damage to her. I'm not kidding. There is stuff in this movie that just... stays with you... long after you leave the theater.


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Hey man cool that you got to see it. Thanks for posting the review. I am certainly looking forward to the film. I did some thinking and had already decided I cannot take her to see this. She struggles with watching films like Halloween or Ghost Ship. There is absolutely no way she can do this one. Besides I doubt that she would go anyway. She hears all the Buzz , and I am sure she has no interest. We usually go to Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios every year, but she does not handle those very well either. We decided to skip this year although I am sure we will go next year.

[TEXASFETT]

Some of my buddies said thats its pretty cool,but it probably depends on the nature of the person.

[toys2cool]

crap I gotta go see this

[YoungOnce]

Hey Darklord,

I haven't seen the movie but I do agree with you about the idiotic way that people act in movie theatres. Cell phones... talking with each other... it's mostly young people who have absolutely NO respect for other people.

[lepage]

I don't know maybe it's just me but I thought this film was simply lousy. I saw it on saturday and walked away dissapointed!
The best part of the film can be seen in the trailor......

[darklord1967]

Yup. I was afraid of this.

Quite a few people have waited too long to see this film, and now they are seeing it in an empty theater with no audience participation.

I enjoyed this film immensely, but I freely admit that I have never seen a film so dependent upon the shrieks and screams of an audience like this one is.

Like i said in my initial review, absent the audience reactions, and absent a theatrical big-screen viewing, this film will loose a LOT of its punch.

It's really a shame.

[livingdead70]

I wasnt impressed either, I thought it was boring.
The end was cool, but by the time it got to the end I was so bored and ready to go it was an anticlimax. This is a good example of a crap film being overhyped so it makes money.
And If I was one of the writers of the Blair Witch Id be calling my lawyer right about now................
trey

[Hector]

Drag Me to Hell was way better...at least that one had great camp.

[Hector]

Some of my buddies said thats its pretty cool,but it probably depends on the nature of the person.

Exactly.

[toys2cool]

Drag Me to Hell was way better...at least that one had great camp.

yeah I really liked that film, the ending was great