Over-hyped, but effective at its core.

Rating: 6/10 (28 March 2010)

I'm not going to sit here and claim that there is nothing frightening about Paranormal Activity. It is essentially a scary little movie that will provide some chills. Its main drawback is the feeling you've seen it before. Only out in the woods. Paranormal Activity is just too much like the Blair Witch Project to truly stand out on its own. It is another series of episodes filmed on a microscopic budget and meant to look like it really happened to the people filming it. Of course you know this going in. You know that it isn't real. So why use the same gimmick? Well, to make money I guess. Both films have made a mint.
The film details a yuppie boyfriend/girlfriend couple in San Diego attempting to film possibly weird goings on that the young woman claim have been happening to her since age 8. The young man buys a large camera and begins filming virtually everything that goes on in their home. He's a "day trader" we learn. I guess they have a lot of spare time on their hands. The house is modest, and very clean and free of clutter. It looks like a tiny house that has been scrubbed and polished for an episode of MTV Cribs. Not a spec of dirt anywhere... until one scene where the guy spreads a bunch of baby powder on the floor to see if anyone/anything walks across it. The couple banter back and forth as couples do, and since they really aren't required to act anything other than frightened, it really doesn't matter that they aren't the most interesting of people.
During the evenings, as the couple sleeps, the video camera set up at the foot of their bed records some odd sights and sounds. Something keeps walking up their stairs which end right outside their bedroom door. Sometimes the door will swing open and shut for a moment. The fact that these two continually sleep with an opened bedroom door, even after things get really ugly, strains all credulity. So does the fact that anyone faced with this kind of situation in real life would be too frightened to keep filming. (Same for Blair Witch) Eventually, the fact that they stay there at all leaves one scratching their head. But are the events we witness and experience along with them frightening? Yes. Most of the time they are. I was on pins and needles waiting to see who/what was going to walk up those steps at the end. And both endings worked. Give this film a try. If nothing else, it will give your girlfriend a reason to hold on tight to you. And isn't that the best part about scary movies? Well, for some people. 6 of 10 stars.
The Hound.