PARANORMAL ACTIVITY Review

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY is the scariest movie since The Exorcist. It’s not perfect but it’ll definitely bother your sleep. Writer/director Oren Peli has created not only a phenomenon for this generation but he has also… restored our faith in horror genre which has been tainted by meaningless slashers and unnecessary torture porn in recent years. It’s haunting, creepy, and no matter how hard you try to man-up, it will freak you out.

After a young, middle class couple moves into what seems like a typical suburban “starter” tract house, they become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be somehow demonic but is certainly most active in the middle of the night.
Especially when they sleep. Or try to.

I’m impressed how much Oren Peli has done with just $15,000 budget. The shaky camera method isn’t as annoying Cloverfield because the important scenes are the ones captured in the middle of the still night when the two characters are trying to sleep in their supposedly quite bedroom. The movie’s strength lies in leaving a lasting impression in your mind that.. you can fight robbers, you can mace intruders,.. but you can’t control what you can’t see, especially if that which you cannot see often attacks you when you’re in your most vulnerable state, when you’re fast asleep. Ar one point it even breaks the fourth wall for a quick second.

THE EXORCIST is still the undisputed champion in my book because the build up in PARANORMAL ACTIVITY is rather slow, not until the last 30 minutes or so that it finally gets unpredictable. I understand Peli’s need in character development but the couple’s arguments can get annoying. The movie is not scripted but the result more or less feels like watching a badly written reality show. That said, the guy is a stereotype of those immature men who are too proud to admit defeat and yet he’s like Steve Irwin, always curious and trying to videotape every single thing, always approaching the danger often without calculation just for the hell of it, not considering the danger it might have on himself and the people around him and the girl is a stereotype of those who fall for guys who aren’t so bright but eventually she’s had about enough. It takes a while for the movie to finally grab hold of you and make sure you’ll sleep with lights on for days.

It’s not some old haunted mansion, it’s your usual nice suburb house. Peli wants you to know that it could happen anywhere, even in your own home, that may be new or you just bought yesterday. What really gives you the creep is you can sense when the demon is approaching. You may never know yet exactly what time or what exactly it’ll do but when it comes near, Peli provides a very excellent sound effect that you’ll remember for a long time. Once again, the shot is in the bedroom, the door is open, it’s practically brilliant because then Peli can play with what’s going on just right outside that bedroom door. The lights, the footsteps, the swinging door, that breathing sound yet again, every element gets worse and worse each night until it finally takes its toll and claims its victims. Sam Raimi’s DRAG ME TO HELL is an equally terrifying demon film but that one was more fun and thrilling thanks to the VFX but Peli’s PARANORMAL ACTIVITY on the other hand is simple and convincing because it looks more possible to happen to anyone.
Take somebody to watch it with you,… a girl would scream and a guy would try to cover their eyes but not quite.
Finally, a scary movie that’s really scary.

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