Dual Review: Paranormal Activity

Paranormal Activity is a new entry in the Horror film genre. It is an independent film that was made on a reported budget of 15,000. The film is shot from the perspective of the camera that the main male protagonist buys before the film begins. The film takes place over the span of almost a month and tells the story of a new couple that have moved in with each other. We soon learn that strange things have taken place in the house. While the couple are asleep at night the hear strange noises and when they wake up things downstairs are out of place. We soon learn that for the female protagonist, Katie, these strange occurrences are nothing new to her.

Jared's Take: What I like about Paranormal Activity is the fact that it is an independent film that had a low budget and it was still up there wit the big budget films in terms of content. The story was well played and the acting mostly felt natural. Even some of the special effects blew me away. While most Hollywood films rely on special effects to make the movie, this one seems to rely more on the human element. Throughout the movie there is this tension that builds up until the final scene. The final 10 minutes of the movie is where the film really shines.

Since this is a low budget film I will try not to be overly critical of the negatives that this movie brings. The movie fails in the fact that it was way too long. Most of the movie takes place in the couples' bedroom and it is viewed through the camera sitting on the tripod. While this is interesting for the first couple of times it soon becomes tiresome. The human element also runs a little thin as the dialogue soon becomes old and stagnant. I think that Paranormal Activity is a breath of fresh air to the lifeless Horror/Gore genre but it does not deserve all of the hype that it has received so far. The movie failed to scare me at all and it definitely was not the scariest movie ever.

Allan's Take: The best thing about this movie in my opinion is the few moments of genuine suspense. The timing is well done. There is a rather large amount of humor but it fits the story and is not over done. I think that it is also good that this film doesn't seem to glorify anything negative and frowns upon the use of Ouja boards. One thing I was happy to see was the high quality of acting. The fear expressed by the girl seemed genuine. Also the special effects were outstanding and looked real. The sound effects were equally good and at times reminded of the original "The Haunting" (1963).

Onto the negative side. The style of "Paranormal Activity" was once original but no longer is. We were introduced to it about 10 years ago with the "Blair Witch Project" and have seen it more recently with the excellent "Cloverfield". So the idea of seeing a movie completely documentary style no longer carries the same kind of newness with it as it once did. The worse thing about the movie is I felt it is too predictable. About 99% of the time I knew what was coming and therefore never felt scared. This well vary depending on the amount of movies you've seen.

Jared's Rating: Although I personally enjoyed Paranormal Activity, I can't let my feelings affect how I feel it would appeal to others. If you just have to see it then GO NOW, but for everyone that is on the fence...RENT IT.

Allan's Rating: "Paranormal Activity" is not a revolutionary film. It's not worth the super amount of hype it has received. However it is better than many of the genre's movies (the Amityville Horror movies, Haunting in Connecticut). Therefore I'll give it a...RENT IT.