Review of Paranormal Activity 2 (2010) by Moviemastereddy — 03 Apr 2016

Don’t Spirits Ever Knock Anymore?

In a very nifty trick, “Paranormal Activity 2” turns out to be both prequel and sequel to its 2007 parent (released in 2009), sliding this new story into the timeline and events of the first with considerable agility. And though the original film’s budget (less than $15,000) has swelled to just under $3 million, the aesthetic and concept — rudimentary in every way — remain rigorously enforced.

Sustaining the illusion of actuality with an on-screen thank you to “the families of the deceased,” the film follows a distraught couple (Sprague Grayden and Brian Boland) whose California home has been invaded by foul stenches, maleficent roars and crashing crockery. The family dog growls, the Spanish maid burns incense, and the new baby coos at an unseen presence (ethnic minorities, animals and infants are evidently better at sensing the supernatural than the rest of us). Determined to prove a corporeal cause, Dad installs security cameras; too bad he doesn’t watch the footage until it’s too late.

Wrangling more people, more cameras and more back story than the original, the director, Tod Williams, clings faithfully to a formula that makes virtues of inelegance and incoherence. Frozen camera setups and blurry night-vision images raise goose bumps without the assistance of eerie music or showy effects, though the strain of stretching the gimmick to a second movie is palpable.

Cannily marketed as a collective experience, the “Paranormal” franchise works best in midnight screenings. The hunger for cold, dead chills is usually best indulged in the company of warm, living bodies.