Paranormal Activity - Some Commentary

Yes, yes, I know. Of course I've bloody seen it (nice of my co-author to check back with me I must say!). Is it a shameless rip off? Well, you could say that about any film genre ever that's represented - in fact you could say that slasher films have many times more 'rip off' films than the 'found footage subgenre, but that's another argument for another time. I am after all providing some commentary to one film, rather than debating it's existence within the sub-genre in which it sits.

One thing that Marvel Man hit the nail on the head with is the implication that this is a marmite film. It most certainly is. Let's set the scene:

Story - there's a spoiler in here, but only one
A couple, one a well off male named Micah and the other, Katie (a student who apparently only studies once in the whole film) live in a big, nice house. Katie claims she's been haunted at various periods of her life, so Micah suggests they use a video camera to record it. This provides the 'found footage' that the film entirely comprises of. So, what is shown? Well, a variety of scenes unfold including a ouija board setting alight, doors opening and closing by themselves, lights going on and off, strange noises etc. Eventually rolling into a possession story (sorry if you didn't expect that).

Positives
It's a great film for the horror fan who prefers to leave much to the imagination when it comes to scenes. It's not all background music, swelling scores, blood all over the place. Quite the opposite. It's naturalistic almost in style. To top this, a fan of the genre who is familiar with apparent 'real life' cases of hauntings will spot the poltergeist build up and will get a thrill from the way in which the action ratchets up a notch every night. Finally, Paranormal Activity keeps the action claustraphobic and places the protagonist in danger in the place we are meant to feel most safe/secure - our own bedroom.

Negatives
The film is over long. Some may disagree, but I felt it just strayed into the slightly too long territory, with a little much exposition for my taste. This brings me to another criticism - Micah. It's almost as though the two things are tied togther. I find that some of his actions were completely inexplicable to me - the thing with the flour was sensible enough, but he offered up no alternative when they couldn't reach the demonologist - when everyone who has seen any single haunting type horror would have been shouting 'go and see a priest!'. Micah also repeatedly goads the demon or whatever it is, despite seeing evidence literally in front of his eyes that supernatural activity is taking place - yet not denying it is happening.

The ending
Perhaps the biggest let-down for me was the ending. I've no doubt that getting the ending of a 'found footage' film is a tricky thing, but man... I heard that Steven Spielberg had something to do with it. How do you say no to a guy like that? In this case, I think they should have done. I'm not offering an alternative, I'm just saying that the ending didn't resonate with me. It wasn't terrible, but it did feel awfully 'Hollywood' for my taste.

Should I see it?
The question really is, why haven't you seen it yet? You'll either love it (flaws and all) or are possessive of no imagination and hate it. Entirely up to you, but it's a worthy addition to the genre. One can only hope that, if there is a sequel, it takes a more standard narrative progression for a possession tale.

Paranormal Activity

Has anyone out there actually been to see this film. It has really caught my attention, even though I feel it would be very polarising and I could either love or despise it. According to the various reviews and conversations I've been having it's either terrifying and original, taking the Blair Witch themes and plot one step further or quite tame and a total rip-off, nowhere near as good as it or other people think. If I ever do get round to catching it somehow I'd be intrigued to see what I make of it, and will post my thoughts. Likewise let me know yours if you're out there and have an opinion, I'm very interested.

MM

The Blair Witch Project - A Retrospective

I'm sure if you're here then you've seen The Blair Witch Project. If not, then this retrospective might give you information enough to help you decide you need to see it. And, as a horror fan, I do insist this is need and not want.

The Blair Witch Project was released in 1999, but prior to being screened a documentary was shown on the Sci-Fi channel (Curse of the Blair Witch), that sold the film as being completely real, true and factual. The legend was thus created for this documentary-style horror film (which is of course completely fictional).

The concept story behind the movie is that some tape reels were found - effectively the film - that show the disappearance of three teens who were making a film on a local legend, the eponymous 'Blair Witch'.

The film starts off with the kids mouching around, talking to locals, planning their trip into the Pine Barrens etc. Then, they go... And all manner of high strangeness starts taking place before one of the most iconic, terrifying finale sequences of any film.

It's been noted by many critics that there are a few reasons why the film is so successful in creating a high tension atmosphere:
1) It's filmed as if it's really happening directly in front of you
2) The DV-style handheld footage adds to the intimate feel, likewise the frequence pieces directly to the camera
3) The way in which the three leads gradually lose all sense of human spirit as their fear increases steadily
4) There's a definite play on the idea that things are 'out there' in the wild - unknown, unknowable things

There's no doubt that The Blair Witch project is not for everybody. You really do have to invest heavily, unlike perhaps a lot of 'popcorn' films when you can just sit there and let it wash over you. Take the time and emotional investment though and you'll receive great rewards in the form of a film that is really unlike anything else.

Everything from [REC] to Cloverfield and the upcoming Paranormal Activity (I'm sure this will be bloody brilliant!) owe a big debt to The Blair Witch Project and I can say that I'm a big fan.

**** 4/5

Paranormal Activity - Trailer

This is one scary movie that I'm really, really looking forward to. Paranormal Activity looks like a cross between The Blair Witch project (it's low budget and uses a lot of handheld cams) and Poltergeist. Suffice to say, I really enjoyed both films so I'm looking forward to the high terror that is glimpsed in the trailer of Paranormal Activity.

Interestingly, I was once told a story of a very similar paranormal problem - a friend of mine had a friend who thought his house was haunted. Only, it was him that was being haunted, not the house...