Movie Review: Paranormal Activity
Monday December 14, 2009
The hype surrounding this film has been almost unreal with news of it being the scariest film of the year (decade even) being said around the world, leading many people to question just what the fuss is all about. Well for once the hype and I agree.
Paranormal Activity is terrifying. Simple as that. In fact, that's what makes it so terrifying, its simplicity. Made for a measly $15,000 by director Oren Peli with the two lead actors given only $500 each, the film completely encapsulates what fear is. From the dark to the unknown to the unstoppable force of evil, Paranormal Activity taps into what it is that truly scares the hell out of a person, and puts it on the big screen.
So the storyline is simple, it opens with a thank you to the families of Katie Featherston and Micah Sloat (our two leads) and the police for use of this footage. Great opening to what will now be around twenty minutes or so of meeting these two characters through a series of home movies thanks to the new camera Micah has brought home to capture whatever it is that keeps going bump in the night. So we follow the couple as they set the camera up every night facing their bed and the rooms outside. Let the games begin.
In what starts of a small occurrences and strange noises, Katie and Micah are then exposed to increasingly horrifying experiences that cause them to turn on each other while fighting against something so evil and yet so unknown that it makes you want to scream yourself.
The beauty of Paranormal Activity is the almost unbearable tension that unfolds throughout the entire movie, from the very first sign of the supernatural with a door moving slowly without cause to the full blown showdown that actually made audience members cry out in horror (myself included).
It is important to note however, that if you want to see a gore-fest, in-your-face horror film than try the next Saw film, because at the heart of this film is the suggested, the atmosphere and the audiences imagination. Everything is awful terrifying unknown sounds, shadows, odd movements and the characters reacting to what they are feeling against themselves. Basically, Paranormal Activity puts you in the position that you feel when you are standing in the dark with the icy feeling down your back...except this time; the worst possible thing is there in the dark.
Backstory
Paranormal Activity has received one of the most unique and biggest launches onto the big screen not known awhile. Originally completed in 2007, the film was actually being given away on DVD at horror film festivals and did not reach the top of the movie production food chain until it hit the DVD player of Steven Spielberg himself, who was reportedly so scared of the film that he sealed it in a garbage bag and sent it straight back to DreamWorks Studio.
Long story short, what then ensues was a massive long process and debate about whether to remake the film with a larger budget and whether to release it at all. After a great campaign of only showing it in the US college towns at midnight sessions, the film was then subject to a "Demand It" voting campaign of whether to release it worldwide. Thanks to overwhelming responses from the voting public the film has gone on to make around $62 million worldwide...I'd say that gamble paid off.
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