- Paranormal Activity
- OPENING: 10/09/2009
- STUDIO: Paramount
- RUN TIME: 99 min
- ACCOMPLICES:
Trailer, Official Site
The Charge
Don’t see it alone.
Opening Statement
The film is being touted as the most terrifying cinematic experience of the year. I don’t know about that. Sure, the early moments are quite creepy; those scenes in which we may or may not actually be witnessing some sort of supernatural occurrence. After all, there’s nothing quite as frightening as the unknown.
The Case
Paranormal Activity tells the story of a twenty-something couple attempting investigate what they believe to be some sort of… well, paranormal activity taking place within their own home. The guy (Micah Sloat) buys a camera and decides he’s going to set it up in the bedroom and let it record while he and his girlfriend (Katie Featherston) sleep. That way, if anything happens during the night, they’ll be able to examine the footage the next morning. The first few nights, some slightly mysterious things happen which may or may not be normal. A door moves back and forth a few inches. Some keys fall off the kitchen counter. Something that sounds like footsteps is heard. The couple calls a psychic. The psychic suspects something’s up and tells them to call a demonologist. Wouldn’t you know it, the demonologist is out of town for a few days. Where’s John Constantine when you need him? So, it’s up to the couple to defend themselves against… whatever it is.
Considering Paranormal Activity was made for a measly $15,000, it will almost assuredly be the lowest-budget theatrical release you’ll see this year. The actors are amateurs. The cinematography is crummy-looking handheld material. There’s no musical score of any sort. Heck, there aren’t even any opening and closing credits. Many critics are comparing it to The Blair Witch Project, a film I found to be terribly overrated. However, I’m pleased to report that Paranormal Activity works, successfully using its limitations to its advantage. Much of the success or failure of the film depends on how much we’re able to buy the "naturally captured footage" premise, and writer/director Oren Peli does a rather remarkable job of ensuring there are no shots which seem unconvincing or contrived. In Featherston and Sloat, he has found two actors capable of giving credible, naturalistic performances that never take us out of the moment.
However, once we get around to the fact that something is unquestionably going bump in the night, the movie loses its edge. The more explicit the paranormal activity, the less nerve-wracking the film becomes. Even so, it remains suspenseful and intriguing until the very end. It’s a tribute to Peli and his actors that there is not a single genuinely boring moment within its 96-minute runtime. Paranormal Activity might not be a white-knuckle supernatural thriller on the level of The Exorcist, but it’s better than Blair Witch. Plus, it’s better than that crummy Couple’s Retreat movie in theatres right now, a solid demonstration that talent matters far more than money when it comes to making movies. Oh, and if you see it, bring a date with you. Those long, eerie shots of the couple lying in bed while some unknown entity wanders through the house are the sort of moments that tend to cause outbreaks of intense clinging.
The Verdict
8/10
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