Like a small-town spook house, with room after room of lame scares.

Rating: 5/10 (20 October 2009)

Steven Spielberg was reportedly so creeped out by "Paranormal Activity" that he had to watch it in two sittings. I seriously have to question that, but then again I know that there were many people totally and completely freaked out by "Blair Witch Project," so perhaps Mr. Spielberg really did get his nerves singed by yet another Camcorder movie.
And then there are the multitude of on-line horror zines that are raving about this movie like its the 'second coming' of horror movies, going as far as saying that it is the scariest film of all time, second only to "The Exorcist." That's a pretty grandiose statement to make, considering that since "The Exorcist" there have been many very scary films released from all over the world. For my money Hideo Nakata's "The Ring" is the true champion of scarier-than-hell movies, followed by Bob Clark's "Black Christmas" and then "Halloween." Just my two-cents.
Warning! Spoiler Ahead!
We all know what the story behind "Paranormal Activity" is: a woman is convinced that she has been followed by some kind of restless spirit since childhood. Her live-in boyfriend, half-convinced that she is delusional, sets up a video system to hopefully capture the 'entity at play' while they sleep. He even goes so far as to challenge this 'thing' to show its colors. Enough said. You know where it goes from there.
Admittedly the back story and the initial execution is intriguing and I actually liked the way the film did some interesting things with slowly developing tension, with just a hint as to what is around the corner. But about a third into it, the movie decides its time to get scary, and 'every' scene that is supposed to be scary, starts off with the same exact sound effect and a superimposed reminder of what day it is. Big mistake. That became annoying. There was no reason to alert us visually to the painfully obvious, and that in itself drained some of the power of the film.
Even more annoying is revisiting the concept that Camcorder guru's will keep holding on to the Camera almost constantly and certainly when things get freaky. When you're scared or being menaced by what is obviously 'paranormal activity,' you drop the Camcorder with the endless battery and get out of there. The same problem that I had with "Blair Witch", I have with this film. People just don't do and act like real people. But yes I know, it's a horror movie and we have to suspend disbelief for the sake of getting scared. But sometimes a movie asks or requires way too much patience and suspension of disbelief, and I don't buy it.
As the film reaches the end, things start to pick way up, and that's when "Paranormal Activity" jumps into hyper-speed and tries very hard to scare us silly. It didn't work for me, simply because we have seen all of this before and the final shot is a rip-off of numerous American and especially Asian horror films that have run out of ideas and then resort to a cheap 'jolt' instead of something that leaves us unsettled.
"Paranormal Activity" has a few interesting moments and I didn't find it necessarily boring. I tried to like it. I tried to stay with it. I tried to care about the characters, so the inevitable horror would really hit me hard. I tried, but no cigar. Before the film was over I completely disliked the characters and the film just did not succeed in creeping me out.
As for giving us anything original, forget it. Just about every scary moment has been lifted from other horror films, notably "The Entity," "The Amityville Horror," "Poltergeist" and of course "Blair Witch Project."
In conclusion, "Paranormal Activity" is not a complete waste of time. There are some entertaining moments and I enjoyed the sarcasm of the boyfriend. I will contend that there were a couple of pretty effective chills as well, but "Paranormal Activity" is the scariest movie since "The Exorcist?" Hardly. A deceptive and over-hyped movie that somehow has garnered undeserved acclaim and attention? Absolutely.