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PARANORMAL ACTIVITY -- ( ENGLISH , 2007 )

Director : Oren Peli

Cast : Micah Sloat , Katie Featherson

Well , they say you should never harbor any expectations at all , before watching a movie , to truly enjoy it.. but when the whole WWW has been going nuts about a movie , how can you not stop yourself from falling prey to the expectations trap ? And , Paranormal Activity ( PA ) is a stellar example to validate this ..

Katie and Micah are a happy couple , who have just moved into their new home , begin to experience a series of weird incidents , which they believe are supernatural. Micah , decides to record all the happenings using a camera and an audio recorder, so as to use the recordings to do some private research to ascertain the reason behind the occurrences. Katie on the other hand is not entirely convinced about his plans , and seeks expert opinion in this regard. That is what the movie is all about.

Widely praised as a truly scary flick , I admit I expected a lot from this , but sadly , I guess my hopes were too high. Paranormal Activity definitely is not a bad film , nor is it a great movie , nor is it a mediocre attempt. What I loved about the movie , was its characterization , more than the actual chills and thrills , which form the crux of any Horror flick.

For an independent film , without much backing and negative star power , it might be tough for the Director to make the audience relate to the characters. But here lies the beauty of this movie. The characterization is simply brilliant , and the way human relationships tend to falter in the face of diversity has been brought about really well.

Horror films these days tend to be nothing more than a bloodbath , amply complemented by Computer Effects etc , with zero logic . Paranormal Activity is a bold attempt at changing this perception . There is not a single drop of blood visible throughout the movie , except for the climax , and hardly noticeable too. computer graphics , make-up etc don't appear anywhere at all.

Shot on a paltry budget of 5000$ , Paranormal Activity proves wrong the wide misconception that good movies can only be made with a strong financial backing. I do not mean to say this is a great movie , but considering it's budgeting constraints , it is well shot .

The camera tends to be the main player in the movie , as what is supposed to scare us , is caught on the camera which Micah places in his bedroom. The bizarre angles , the little jerks and shakes in the visuals , all contribute to the natural appeal of this movie. Nothing seems to be artificial , ranging from the house , to the dialogues , to the plot itself.

Everything about the movie seems to be so realistic , largely due to the fine performances from the pair. Micah and Katie perfectly complement each other. Katie has a past connection to the happenings , as we learn later on and can genuinely feel the horror of the incidents , while Micah , appears to be an easy going guy , with clever sarcasm in his dialogues. Micah seems more focused on his camera and its use in the research , rather than in solving the actual problem.


The screenplay is quite brisk , and even though there are a few dull moments , the overall eerie mood of the movie is maintained. However there are certain "YAAAwn " moments , especially when after a point you realize that you never are going to get really scared . But I would never classify it to be boring , and it makes for a rather decent watch , pace wise.

The first half an hour or so , goes in establishing the characters and any scares , that's depending on your scare - levels , appear after that only. But the whole Day-Night cycle tends to get a wee bit repetitive , but no complaints as the concept probably demanded such a method of storytelling.

I am not trying to sound all brave and bold here , but few movies have scared me , in the true sense of the word. Like I said , Computer graphics and make-up etc have never really scared me . What scares me , is the fact that unexpected things might happen , anytime. I remember reading somewhere , a M.Night Shyamalan interview , where he says something like " I do not believe blood and gore is scary. What scares me , is , I sit at my office desk and suddenly the picture frame of my family photo on my desk falls down , for no reason .. I pick it up and place it properly back , but it still falls down . I repeat the act and it still falls down , for unknown reasons.. That to me , is fear ".

Forgive my memory , but I think that's what he said..Anyway , I just meant to say , that I too share the same perception about fear and horror. And Paranormal activity is more of a mind-games genre of horror , rather than something which visually scares you.

Yes , there are a few scenes which scare you visually , but these are more of " Silent for sometime and sudden loud noise " kinda scenes , rather than true fear. You know , the kind which makes you jump suddenly , but only to fall a second later , laughing at how stupid you were for being scared by a sudden loud noise , amidst silence. However , I would not be insensitive enough to label PA as this type of movie . Yes , it did not scare me , but it definitely played with me psychologically.

I mean , it manages to hold your suspense , as you wait to see what unfolds , because you can relate to the characters to a fairly large extent , thanks to the realistic making . When the couple go to bed , as we see in the camera's recording , you tend to be as nervous as them , to see what really happens , and what the Activity is all about. Even during the initial scenes , you wait to REALLY know what the psychic has to say , when Katie calls him for help. That , people , personally speaking , contributes to the charm of a horror movie.

On the flip side , very few genuine scares in this movie . I watched this at past-midnight , with the lights out , and in a small room with a fairly loud 5.1 Speaker system . It still did not give me the chills. I admit it held my interest , but it was more psychological than horror.

Many people have hailed this as one of the greatest horror films ever , and saying they had nightmares after watching it etc etc . I saw it past-midnight .. It's 3 AM now , and I will sleep in sometime , however , I can assure you that I certainly won't have any nightmares , nor is Paranormal Activity going to make me lose my sleep , in anyway . In case I do , you shall be the first to know.

Finally , I would term it as a very good attempt , but not quite haunting :(

VERDICT : Good ( 3 / 5 )