Movie Review: Paranormal Activity

‘Paranormal Activity’ managed to hit the film world’s attention with its nominal budget, no big stars and an unknown director by grossing over $100 million at the worldwide box office.

The movie has a ‘hand held camera style’ as in other hit movies like ‘The Blair Witch Project’ and ‘REC’ and a ‘ghost in side the house’ theme like ‘Poltergeist’.

Katie, a student, and her boyfriend Micah, a day trader, live in a two-story tract house in suburban San Diego, California. Katie claims that a ghostly presence has haunted her since her youth and believes that it has followed her to their new home. Micah buys a video camera in the hopes of capturing paranormal activity on film. During a visit to their house, Dr. Fredrichs, a self-professed psychic, assesses that they are being plagued by a demon which feeds off negative energy and is intent on haunting Katie no matter where she goes. Each night, Micah leaves the video camera on a tripod in their bedroom to record the occurring while he and Katie are asleep. This of course leads to some scary moments with the demon playing havoc with their lives when they are asleep and awake. While I must say that it wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be but the makers have managed to pull off a well managed slick film. The experimental kind of filmmaking, the boldness to take up such a subject and make a film like this when this could have easily a big budget thriller with some big stars, go in favor of the movie.

The first 15-20 minutes where the story sets in are boring and just when you feel the need of scary moments, the story trembles you with fear by bringing the most horrific sequences but..unfortunately that also brings the movie to an end. The climax is pretty hard hitting and there are some scenes which really freak you out!

Rating – 3/5