"Paranormal Activity" fundamentally succeeds in what it sets out to accomplish, but it does have a few problems keeping it from perfection...

Rating: 9/10 (6 October 2010)

Oren Peli's 2007 pseudo-documentary thriller "Paranormal Activity" is a film that follows a long tradition of the faux-documentary sub-genre. Following such classics as "Cannibal Holocaust" and "The Blair Witch Project", it seemed hard for yet another small film like this to succeed and remain fresh. Somehow, it worked. Mostly.
The film follows our two protagonists, Katie and Micah, a young couple. Micah, Katie's somewhat skeptical and foolish boyfriend, has recently bought a camera and plans on documenting the so-called presence that seems to be following Katie, and manifesting itself as some sort of haunting.
The film definitely follows the philosophy of "less is more", which I appreciate. The film makes heavy use of simple tactics, like the small noises you can just barely hear in the background, or the things you see only after the fact (object having been pushed over, or picture frames being mysteriously broken), and it is effective to a certain degree. Though I will say it isn't until later in the film, when the manifestations become more violent and blatant, that the fear really picks up. I understand that noises can be frightening to people who are experiencing the events first-hand, but to an audience, 60-minutes of nothing but eerie banging and strange voices can get, well... boring.
Also problematic is the reliance of the actors and filmmakers on conventions of the sub-genre. If you've seen any other film done in the faux-documentary style, you will know ahead of time exactly what will happen, and when it will happen. Films like "Cannibal Holocaust" and "Blair Witch" pioneered this style, so the audience didn't know what to expect. Here, we have a vague idea, so some tension is lost.
Also, the characters are charming and the performances are good, but there is something a little off-putting about seeing the same sort of characters we've seen before many times doing exactly what we expect them to. We know there will be tension between Micah and Katie. We know how they will develop. We just know too darned much up front, just by virtue of the fact that this type of film and these characters already exist.
All that being said, the film is exceptionally solid. The characters, while formulaic, are well-acted, and the film is genuinely creepy, especially during the final half hour, which to me, more than makes up for the shaky start.
As a person who comes from a family full of believers in ghosts and the paranormal, I was able to connect with this film in many ways, which is part of the reason why I'm willing to cut it some slack.
I give this film a pretty-good 7 out of 10. It's mildly creepy, and is definitely a good movie to see, by yourself or with a date, in the dark.
Edit: February, 2012. I recently have changed my position on this film, after re-watching it, and am raising my score to a 9. My complaints still stand, but this is a much better film than I initially credited it for, and it functions better after multiple viewings.