Despite the Hype, ‘Paranormal Activity’ is Not Scary – But it is a Good Film
Posted by Monkey 1 in: All News,Movie Reviews,Movies
It was billed by many people as the scariest movie ever made, so I found myself compelled to go see Paranormal Activity.
Let me first say the film is very good. It keeps your attention and, with a purported budget of $11K (or, depending on where you read it, $15K), the director did a masterful job. Why Steven Spielberg would have considered remaking it with a bigger budget is really quite non-sensical. The film is good just as it is.
Yet despite the hype, Paranormal Activity just isn't scary.
The twitterverse is filled with tweets from thousands of people all claiming it was super scary and the scariest film they've seen. So clearly many people found the film scary. I'm not saying those people are wrong, because the truth is how scary we deem a movie to be is very much dependent upon our mood at the time, our personal nature, and the timing of when we see the film. In the case of Paranormal Activity, it is also very heavily dependent upon the reaction of the audience as a whole (many reviewers claim the film is a must see in the theater film for this reason).
However, to my mind if we take a receptive mood, good timing, and the audience collective out of the equation, we're left with the simple truth that Paranormal Activity is not scary.
But it is rather creepy. There are definite moments that elicit goosebumps and definite moments where it submerges you in a convincing haunting setting.
I also want to make it clear that I'm not trashing the film, I'm trashing the hype. The film was really quite excellent and there were scenes in it that I was super impressed to see given the miniscule budget. Perhaps I might have experienced a couple of frightening feelings during the film if I hadn't entered the theater expecting to be scared witless, but then in retrospect I doubt it. I simply can't recall a moment where it was scary as opposed to genuinely creepy or, in one moment, horrifying.
I'm still going to give Paranormal Activity a good rating, despite being somewhat let down as a result of hype. And given that a lot of people are reporting that it scared them, who knows, perhaps if you go see the film you'll get a fright. All I can say is, don't expect one.
Finally, here's what I think the true moral of Paranormal Activity's story is: if a demon has a crush on you, don't move in with a dumb-ass.
[Rating:10/12]
Watch the Paranormal Activity trailer:
Tags: Paranormal Activity
This movie was in no way scary. I get startled easier that any 6′ 200 lb male on the planet and I didn’t jump once. Waste of time.
I enjoyed the movie, and whilst I didn’t find myself particularly scared during it, I’ll admit I did notice a few more “bumps in the night” afterwards.
i completely agree. it was creepy but it was made to be that way and i doubt anyone will not be creeped out but to jump? no. i saw the movie last night expecting to walk our of the theater almost in tears because im very easy to scare but if you take some of the screamer pranks off the internet and put them in a movie this is what you get. it just seemed predictable. the golden rule is if youre watching something with ghosts and NOTHING is moving, expect a quick scare. maybe playing silent hill and resident evil for so many years has made me alittle harder to scare but in the end i was extremely disappointed. after saying that. yes im trashing the film. its said to be one of the scariest films ever and i just dont see it. id be more likely to name it paranormal footsteps for 2 hours.witha scream at the end.
SPOILERS AHEAD…. I am also easily scared … I have a very active imagination, being a visual artist. But Paranormal Activity was not scary. I’ve had scarier things happen to me in real life. Too, I (mentally) predicted that a number of things were going to happen … the foreshadowing was clumsy and predictable. I knew when Katie was telling Micah not to film her feet (in the beginning scene)and when she slept each night with her foot protruding from the bedsheets that the ghost/demon was going to grab her foot at some point up ahead in the film. And it did, of course. I also knew the Oujai board cursor was going to move by itself when they left the house. I also predicted that the ghost/demon would smash that “happy couple” pic hanging prominently in the hall. Finally I knew right from the beginning that Katie , possessed, was going to kill Micah. The nod of thanks to the Police in the very beginning credits gave it away… All too formula. I do have to say that the sounds– not the imagery – did creep me out a bit.
I also agree that this was a great premise for a film — but it could have been handled better… less predictable. The Steven Spielberg ending was a let-down. Waaayyyy toooo predictable.
Ok. So first of all I have to admit. I don’t watch scary movies in general. I’m the type of person who gets frightened by the mildest of films. But to my surprise, I didn’t even jump. It was well done, but there wasn’t really any thrill. I expected to be scared out of my mind. A little bit of a letdown I’d have to say after all the hype surrounding this movie.