An Above Average Horror Movie, Under Certain Condition

Rating: 8/10 (31 August 2011)

After hearing all the hype for this movie, I finally rented it on DVD and watched it, which brings me immediately to my first comment. Just like with the Blair Witch Project (and I will compare these two films throughout the review), this movie was made for a home viewing experience. There are a few reasons for this, the most obvious being that it is done in the "home movie" style, which theaters simply can't show and make it look good. The second is that this movie requires your complete attention, and if you watch it in a crowded theater, even one talkative person can ruin everything.
Now for the movie itself. No spoilers here, by the way. The plot is simple enough; a couple moves into a house, only to find that a paranormal presence (hence the title) is there with them. Much like the Blair Witch Project, encounters with this supernatural being grow more intense as time goes on. I won't give away the ending, but I will say that I found it to be a little predictable, but that doesn't mean it wasn't effective.
The acting is fine in my opinion. The actors portray ordinary people, and this comes through in the movie. I never felt like they were acting. Actually, it felt very natural.
With the plot and acting aside, I can now discuss the most important aspect of the movie: how scary it is. Well, this is a mixed bag. The biggest problem I had was that the ghostly activity only occurs at night, so when you see footage of the day, any tension you felt goes away because you know you are in "down time", and you know nothing will be there to scare you. The Blair Witch Project, however, didn't have this problem, as I felt fear during the day scenes almost as much as the night scenes. Also, Paranormal Activity is in a suburban home. Although this means more people can relate to the setting, the woods in The Blair Witch Project presented a more ominous and frighting environment.
The horror itself is actually pretty good. It is VERY subtle usually, with only a few "jump" moments being included. Due to this, many people deem this movie "not scary." Well, if you want a movie that uses loud blasts of sound to scare you, then this movie is not for you. Sorry that the producers tried something that takes imagination and patience to enjoy. Interestingly, much of the tension comes from the audio only. I can't really explain this without spoiling anything, so I won't. As for the visuals, the fact that the shots are done in the style of home movies makes it effective. If they had used ordinary camera work, these visuals would have been a joke.
To wrap things up, this movie will keep you in suspense for a good long while, with a few scares here and there, presuming you aren't the kind of person I mentioned above. I say, if you liked the Blair Witch Project, you'll probably like this. If you didn't, skip this movie. And if you liked this but haven't seen the Blair Witch Project, watch that immediately! You'll love it!