Despite trying hard, it is a lot of hype

Rating: 7/10 (28 October 2009)

Before you continue, I would like to make it clear that I am a seasoned veteran of horror films and most of them don't affect me in the least anymore.
I'm sure you've heard all the comparisons to the Blair Witch Project but this movie takes the whole 'paranormal stalker' idea and brings it a little closer to home. Literally. Katie's the pretty college student, Micah is her slightly moronic boyfriend. And something is banging on their walls at night. They bring in a ghost expert, who tells them they have a demon, which has been messing with Katie on and off for years. He gives them a number to call for a demon expert and tells them not to provoke the angry entity. So what do they do? Not call the expert and Micah starts trying to screw with the demon. Things start getting worse. So he starts acting like more of an idiot. And by the time they finally get around to calling the master of demons, he's out of town and the ghost expert tells them he can't do a thing. The unseen demon makes it known that it isn't happy with Micah and despite deciding to leave the house (which won't help because Katie is what draws this thing), they stay one last night...
While the idea is very fresh when compared to recent horror films (mainly remakes), the scares aren't that bad for a horror veteran. A moving door, powdery footprints that appear out of nowhere, loud noises downstairs, etc. But to those who are desensitized to these simple scares, it becomes another horror movie. There are too many 'duh' moments where a logical person would say 'why are they doing this?' It really kills suspension of belief when someone does (or doesn't do) something so clearly stupid that you slap your forehead.
If you can maintain suspension of disbelief for the 100 minutes, it is decent. It gets points for being original compared to recent horror. But is it the 'scariest movie in the last 10 years'? Not unless you never see horror movies at all. It's good for a Halloween scare but the hype around it will soon fade when the sequel is officially announced.