"Blair Witch Project" meets "The Haunting"

Rating: 6/10 (7 January 2010)

I've probably seen "Paranormal Activity" too late. By the time the movie finally arrived in Austria it had already been hyped up for years. Yes, years. Bloody-Disgusting had already raved about this low-budget-sensation before the movie was picked up by a major studio and found a worldwide release. So, I had high expectations, but soon enough the backlash started and a lot of people pointed out that "Paranormal Activity" isn't the great, once-in-a-lifetime-horror-movie it had been made out to be at first.
The truth is somewhere in the middle. For the low budget he had to work with director Oren Peli has made a highly atmospheric movie that doesn't need the help of a score or cheap scares to work. The horror happens in the viewer's mind, as they say. This is basically "The Haunting" remade with the looks of "Blair Witch Project".
Of course, this also means that the movie isn't for everyone - myself included, because really nothing much happens: Most of the time there are noises in the house and we watch the main characters freaking out about it. This may be scary if you're having a lot of fantasy and not much experience watching horror movies. However, if you've seen anything this side of "Cannibal Holocaust" and "À l'intérieur", "Paranormal Activity" just doesn't really do it for you. It's not a bad movie by any means. It's just nothing special (except, of course, for its spectacular revenue, but that's information only movie studio bosses should be interested in, right?).
One last piece of advice: Contrary to common belief that this movie works best at the cinema, I have to say, in hindsight I wish I had seen it at home. This is where the horror in the movie takes place. Watching it alone in your apartment at night probably helps to freak you out more than being in a public place with screaming teens.