Sinister accounts for real "scary" v. big money maker Paranormal 4

Rating: 8/10 (1 November 2012)

The tail end of Halloween week is here. So if you're tired of dressing up and going to parties, catching a spooky flick might be a good way to end this weekend. So which new box office hit do you go see? Sinister and Paranormal Activity 4 would be good candidates depending on the levels of intensity you can handle.
Though both movies are packed with 'jumpy' scenes and creepy possessed children their modes of scaring are on different scales.
Yet another sequel in the Paranormal Activity franchise was released on October 19. Since the highly successful beginning in 2007 with Paranormal Activity 1, the following three have significantly lost integrity and loyal viewers. After watching the fourth movie, it is hard to believe it would pick up any first timers.
If a loyal Paranormal Activity follower saw this movie, I am convinced he/she could have predicted the outcome of several scenes as I did. Just like the last 3, our anxiety rises when the scene reaches night, and levels back out when it's daytime. Paranormal Activity follower Alan Tam, 23, agrees, "even though I like Paranormal 4, the series is starting to get played out."
This movie was full of dead space and lost opportunities to scare. Several times we watched an empty room or stared at a door waiting for something, or someone, to appear. It was disappointing how long this movie lasted compared to how little times I was spooked. And even when there was a jump, it usually was just a loud thud, a gasp from a character, or the meaningless cat that leaped onto a desk.
Along with that, the film's realistic attempts fell short. Of course Alex (the teenage girl determined to stop what is disturbing her home) has parents who don't listen to her fears and who seem to have somewhere to go for a few hours every night. Of course they never call the police for help (then again, what horror movie character does?). And of course they have a laptop for every room that can record every minute of every day. More seriously, if baby Hunter was kidnapped in PA2, how did the family in PA4 adopt him as a toddler named Wyatt?
As much as I would love to give my criticism of the end of the movie, if you've seen the previous three Paranormal Activities I don't think my spoiler would come as a shock.
Devoted Paranormal fans only have to wait another year for Paranormal Activity 5 to release in October 2013. Another devotee Mark LaBellarte, 24, says, "as each movie came out around Halloween I found myself heading to the movie theater to watch the next installment of the series; but every time I came out of each movie I was disappointed more and more."
With a much larger budget, a higher rating on Rotten Tomatoes, a tripod, and a Hollywood big name actor, Sinister is a tough competitor in the paranormal category. Sinister entered theaters on October 12.
In this spine-chilling thriller, Ethan Hawk plays a crime writer who struggles to repeat his 15- minutes of fame with another bestseller. He dishonestly moves his wife and two children into a crime scene house where a whole family was murdered by hanging except for a little girl. Hawk, desperate to uncover the whereabouts of her discovers a box in the attic full of video footage of this killer's past work. Determined to attain justice for the families and his own fame and fortune he finds himself in the middle of the demon slaughterer's path.
Though Jason Blum produced both Paranormal Activity 4 and Sinister he wasted no time in getting the audience to the edge of their seats in Sinister. In the opening credits, we watched the four victims squirm helplessly as they hang until suffocation. Right away I knew this movie was going to be disturbing.
Like Paranormal, the scenes in Sinister also got the best of my imagination in unsettling lengthy scenes. The camera slowly lingered toward a mysterious object or suspicious room only to drum a loud noise as a snake or sleepwalking boy appeared. However, sometimes the surprises were really terrifying images of the 'demon' called "Bagul" or creepy ghostlike children.
It is accurate how Hawk plays his character so realistically in wanting to get his fame and riches back. He also appears to be a normal guy who gets disturbed by murders and fears what is happening to his life. LaBellarte says, "The death scenes seemed so real and believable. I felt like I was a detective trying to figure out the story, but it had a super natural twist that I really liked."
To my surprise, the ending to Sinister was not the classic Hollywood horror ending where the protagonist conquers evil. It definitely is shocking. 21 year-old self proclaimed horror movie enthusiast, Sidney Wilson compared the two movie's endings, "The ending of Paranormal left me looking around the theater going, 'Wait, was that really it? You're kidding.' and at the end of Sinister I had the chills and was a little afraid to go to sleep".
So before you decide to go out and throw on the same costume from two nights ago, consider celebrating the last weekend of Halloween with a trip to the theater. Depending if you enjoy being spooked from nervous anticipation or you like being so disturbed that you can't look away, each movie would suffice. Or do what I did and watch both startling flicks in the same day. Their effects have put higher speed in my step when I walk to my car at night, and I dare not look out my window when it is dark.