Review of Paranormal Activity (2007) by Brett W — 26 Oct 2012

White people terrorized by vague noises and things that slightly move: THE MOVIE!

Films like this are often more difficult to critique, it seems. Because it is low budget and features a small production is it given a freer pass than it would in other circumstances? Is this what's happened here? I'm not quite sure, but what I think has occurred with Paranormal Activity is a somewhat unique film that takes the gimmicks of the faux-documentary/imagination based horror film from a slightly different angle. What's harder to gauge though is why this particular variation of the formula has struck such an overwhelmingly positive chord with a great deal of audiences.

The primary question is does this movie work? I would say yes but only on a basic level of possessing a refreshing simplicity, something severely lacking in modern day horror. The second question is whether or not this measures up to Blair Witch in terms of building on or showing audiences anything new in the minimalist style.

In discussing the film's pros and cons I think it is necessary to point out certain stylistic choices which are this film's double edged sword. The major tension builder in Paranormal relies heavily on the fact that they live in a common looking house. It could be anyone's home, basically. It's pristine suburbia that allows the viewer to immediately identify with the film's surroundings. We've always been shown scary mansions and run-down farm houses, but most people don't live there. This was kinda new. A problem with this choice though is that nothing changes. As with the characters themselves there is no visual representation of evil; whether it be distortion or ugliness or age there's nothing in their house but Pier One furniture. By the fourth or fifth night the repetitive nature of; upstairs, downstairs and bedroom becomes tedious and the very simplicity that they're trying to scare us with becomes laborious. There has to be a progression, and Paranormal spends too much time treading over the same ground. A similar problem exists with the characters. I liked the fact that they were down to earth, natural, fleshed out people, but for the most part there is no transformation. What little there might be is limited by the actor's abilities and all we get is a lovable pair who's fear develops even more slowly than the spirit's attacks until the narrative just ends without much buildup. Unlike Blair Witch which uses the ever-growing hysteria of persons involved to mask the lack of a visible threat, Paranormal simply rinses and repeats, seemingly entertaining itself with the novelty of unseen, midnight molestation. Molestation which is given only the most arbitrary of meaning thanks to a brief and pointless scene where some internet site tells about some thing happening to some other woman that vaguely relates to the plot of this movie. Gee. Blair Witch gave us a running history throughout. The ghost in this film has no past or future, he seems to enjoy just hangin' out in the 'burbs, haunting doughy, post-college age chicks with (very) loose ties to the occult.

For me there were too many missed opportunities and the overwhelming sense was that this was really a polar opposite reaction to the overblown violence in popular films such as Hostel and Saw...(as well as the result of some tricksey marketing via studio exec super-geniuses). I hate to incorporate the hype factor but I really don't understand the love this has gotten from most critics. I have sympathy for the filmmakers but if I'm going to be paying the same ten bucks for any given film then I don't think it's fair to put on the kid gloves just because it was low budget and cheap to make...it is was it is, and this is clearly amateur material, promising, but still amateur. Honestly I didn't think this was all that different from "Death of a Ghost Hunter" which was made in the same year. Yes, the acting was worse in that film but at least the story actually had depth, and for the most part the only major difference (I think) was the marketing machine behind it. This is just one of those "right place at the right time" sort of films.