Paranormal Activity

[The Apatow Crew]

I think this movies own worst enemy was itself, mostly the marketing department and the night vision thing of the crowds in theaters, I seen one tv spot and they showed a woman screaming and it was the typical woman screaming sound effect you hear in a horror movie.

 

[Dark Victory]

^Worst enemy? Dude, if it wasn't for the film's marketing campaign, there's no way it would be as successful as it is now.

 

[Episode29]

^Worst enemy? Dude, if it wasn't for the film's marketing campaign, there's no way it would be as successful as it is now.

Son, I must be havin' a religious experience, because you be speakin' the gospel! t:

 

[Heretic]

Heretic, I've watched ending a few times - [BLACKOUT]it lunged at the camera, we don't know if it ate the camera. It happened in a fraction of second. For all we know, it broke the camera, it smashed the lens. We have no evidence that it ate the camera.[/BLACKOUT]

The only thing the demon was interested in was Katie. It could care less about the audience. In fact, I don't even know where you're getting that from. If it wanted to scare to terrorize the audience, it would have left the camera alone so we could see [BLACKOUT]what it did to Micah [/BLACKOUT]- after all wasn't it their families who had the footage first? They get the 'thank you' for use of the footage at the start of the film.

Micah did a ton of things wrong - the biggest was the camera. The fact that he kept using it added to the tension between him and Katie, and the negative energy it created was what unleashed it in the end.

[blackout]It wanted Katie, and it got what it wanted, destroyed the camera, and left.[/blackout] It didn't give a crap about the audience.

[BLACKOUT]The last thing the lens sees is the girls mouth, as it attacks the lens. The ONLY reasonable explanations for that is that it was going t eat the lens, or it was going after the audience in a cheap scare tactic that we've all seen a thousand times.

Micah did a ton of things wrong, and the LEAST of which was the camera. Again, the film backs this up completely with dialogue from the expert. The film itself, not my personal opinion backs me up[/BLACKOUT]

 

[Aesop Rocks]

So, I just watched it and personally, I loved it. I'm a sucker for handy cam videos and paranormal things so this drew me in.

I heard and well, now KNOW there are different endings.

Spoiler

My ending was Katie getting shot by the cops, my friend was her lunging at the camera.

Micha was annoying, through-and-through but, he played a good "non-believer" for most of the film until [blackout]The door slams in front of him and Katie and the demon holds it shut.[/blackout]

Katie was a pretty decent character, she was bearable and somewhat made up for the male characters lack of being good (for the most part).

The effects were also very VERY good. Most notably [BLACKOUT] the dragging[/BLACKOUT]. That was probably the most insane scene I have ever seen because how real it felt watching that.

Spoiler

I don't like how we never see it per-say so much as just the footprints and shadow on the door.

 

[craigdbfan]

Wasn't scared once throughout the entire movie. I was kind of waiting for the moment/s where I would be seeing something truly frighting but it never happened.

With that said I still enjoyed watching the film. Micah was annoying for me at first but gained my sympathy by the second half for being so determined to defeat this entity. The chick was forgettable for me at least.

Overall the "pee your pants scary" factor was incredibly overhyped but still an entertaining film in light of using rather simple stunts in trying to elicit a reaction from the audience.

 

[Bob ROARman!]

Yeah that's the thing about it. It's trapped in the "true story" mold so much and it so much wants to pull of that angle that you're not really going to get anything extreme, hence the edited endings now. That's why after the Blair Witch, these sort of movies are never really any good because you can only pull that off a certain number of times. It was really nothing new.

If you've ever seen "An Unknown Encounter" that scared me more than any movie like Paranormal Activity will. Because those are real people scared to death about real incidents and not knowing why things like blood is oozing out at random places in their house, or how the hell this happened:

It's about 10-15 year old documentary that disturbed me more than any recent "horror" movie.

 

[craigdbfan]

Looks like that guys got wood.

But seriously what exactly makes that picture scary? Kind of confused as to what is going on in that pic.

If you can put it into context that'd be nice.

 

[Aesop Rocks]

But seriously what exactly makes that picture scary? Kind of confused as to what is going on in that pic.

The guy was dragged by an unknown force and hung.

 

[Poetic Chaos]

[blackout]The last thing the lens sees is the girls mouth, as it attacks the lens. The ONLY reasonable explanations for that is that it was going t eat the lens, or it was going after the audience in a cheap scare tactic that we've all seen a thousand times.

Micah did a ton of things wrong, and the LEAST of which was the camera. Again, the film backs this up completely with dialogue from the expert. The film itself, not my personal opinion backs me up[/blackout]

The entire way you viewed this movie makes no sense to me. [BLACKOUT]Katie ate the camera[/BLACKOUT] Wtf? Is there anyone else here who got that impression? I'm pretty sure anyone else who watched would assume she just attacked it.

 

[byte19]

I think heretic just want blood n guts and got WAY disappointed at the way it ended... not sure why he's still here... you don't like it... breaking it down like this... makes me think he's up with the lights on, trying to debunk it to go back to sleep... hmm.

 

[Crook]

The entire way you viewed this movie makes no sense to me. [BLACKOUT]Katie ate the camera[/BLACKOUT] Wtf? Is there anyone else here who got that impression? I'm pretty sure anyone else who watched would assume she just attacked it.

I lol'd.

 

[Kane52630]

Yeah that's the thing about it. It's trapped in the "true story" mold so much and it so much wants to pull of that angle that you're not really going to get anything extreme, hence the edited endings now. That's why after the Blair Witch, these sort of movies are never really any good because you can only pull that off a certain number of times. It was really nothing new.

If you've ever seen "An Unknown Encounter" that scared me more than any movie like Paranormal Activity will. Because those are real people scared to death about real incidents and not knowing why things like blood is oozing out at random places in their house, or how the hell this happened:

It's about 10-15 year old documentary that disturbed me more than any recent "horror" movie.

its on youtube
[YT]dwSIczexst0[/YT]

 

[-Arya-]

I thought this was rather mediocre. Nothing was particularly frightening, or suspenseful until the last 10 minutes or so. Even then, it lead to a underwhelming finale.

So did I find it overhyped? Absolutely.

 

[Heretic]

1. I have not seen most of the Saw movies, Hostel 2, Turistas, or most of the other "really gory" films...as I didnt enjoy the ones I saw...so I doubt I need lots of blood to be entertained.

Regarding the end...

[BLACKOUT]But the point remains...the entire movie is setting up ONE thing..this movie is really happening. The scares are pretty mild, and the reason why it is amped up is because of the presentation of it "really happening".

The theatrical ending completely obliterates the concept that this movie was really happening. It was EXACTLY the same scene as in Ghost Rider when the bad guy turns to his demon form, alone with no one around, and then turns around to snarl at the camera...why would he do that??? It makes n sense. This movie does the same cheap scare of "ooh, shes attacking the audience".

The movie was VERY clear...the entity was powered by Micahs attempts to communicate, and his threats...the movie does NOT say that the camera gave the entity strength. To say that it does is to ignore the facts of the film and take a guess because you are trying to make sense of that ridiculous ending. The entity did not care at all about that camera...it did plenty of stuff right in front of it...yet in the end she either attacks the viewers ala Ghost Rider, or she eats the camera. She went face first toward the lens. That is NOT how you attack something, unless you are biting it. I am well aware that her eating the camera makes no sense...but the fact remains that she attacked it mouth-first.[/BLACKOUT]

 

[terry78]

1. I have not seen most of the Saw movies, Hostel 2, Turistas, or most of the other "really gory" films...as I didnt enjoy the ones I saw...so I doubt I need lots of blood to be entertained.

Regarding the end...

[BLACKOUT]But the point remains...the entire movie is setting up ONE thing..this movie is really happening. The scares are pretty mild, and the reason why it is amped up is because of the presentation of it "really happening".

The theatrical ending completely obliterates the concept that this movie was really happening. It was EXACTLY the same scene as in Ghost Rider when the bad guy turns to his demon form, alone with no one around, and then turns around to snarl at the camera...why would he do that??? It makes n sense. This movie does the same cheap scare of "ooh, shes attacking the audience".

The movie was VERY clear...the entity was powered by Micahs attempts to communicate, and his threats...the movie does NOT say that the camera gave the entity strength. To say that it does is to ignore the facts of the film and take a guess because you are trying to make sense of that ridiculous ending. The entity did not care at all about that camera...it did plenty of stuff right in front of it...yet in the end she either attacks the viewers ala Ghost Rider, or she eats the camera. She went face first toward the lens. That is NOT how you attack something, unless you are biting it. I am well aware that her eating the camera makes no sense...but the fact remains that she attacked it mouth-first.[/BLACKOUT]

I think we all want a girl that does that.

 

[omid17]

i was listening to the radio the guy asked some girl if the movie was scary, she replied saying it was hilarious and her whole theater was cracking up, first time i heard a review like that for this film

 

[Hobgoblin]

1. I have not seen most of the Saw movies, Hostel 2, Turistas, or most of the other "really gory" films...as I didnt enjoy the ones I saw...so I doubt I need lots of blood to be entertained.

Regarding the end...

[BLACKOUT]But the point remains...the entire movie is setting up ONE thing..this movie is really happening. The scares are pretty mild, and the reason why it is amped up is because of the presentation of it "really happening".

The theatrical ending completely obliterates the concept that this movie was really happening. It was EXACTLY the same scene as in Ghost Rider when the bad guy turns to his demon form, alone with no one around, and then turns around to snarl at the camera...why would he do that??? It makes n sense. This movie does the same cheap scare of "ooh, shes attacking the audience".

The movie was VERY clear...the entity was powered by Micahs attempts to communicate, and his threats...the movie does NOT say that the camera gave the entity strength. To say that it does is to ignore the facts of the film and take a guess because you are trying to make sense of that ridiculous ending. The entity did not care at all about that camera...it did plenty of stuff right in front of it...yet in the end she either attacks the viewers ala Ghost Rider, or she eats the camera. She went face first toward the lens. That is NOT how you attack something, unless you are biting it. I am well aware that her eating the camera makes no sense...but the fact remains that she attacked it mouth-first.[/BLACKOUT]

I agree and disagree. I agree with the part about the demon

Spoiler

attacking the camera mouth first being intended to scare the audience. I can just see the FX guy saying "This will REALLY scare em!"

On the other hand,

Spoiler

the psychic DID say that the demon would be empowered by negative energy. Any bad feelings between Katie and Micah would feed the entity. This was stated in the movie. Kaite kept asking Micah to turn off the camera and he refused, leading to Katie's resentment of him. More bad energy was created when he "borrowed" the ouija board. (The moron.)So basically Micah did everything exactly wrong in the situation.

 

[Poetic Chaos]

1. I have not seen most of the Saw movies, Hostel 2, Turistas, or most of the other "really gory" films...as I didnt enjoy the ones I saw...so I doubt I need lots of blood to be entertained.

Regarding the end...

[blackout]But the point remains...the entire movie is setting up ONE thing..this movie is really happening. The scares are pretty mild, and the reason why it is amped up is because of the presentation of it "really happening".

The theatrical ending completely obliterates the concept that this movie was really happening. It was EXACTLY the same scene as in Ghost Rider when the bad guy turns to his demon form, alone with no one around, and then turns around to snarl at the camera...why would he do that??? It makes n sense. This movie does the same cheap scare of "ooh, shes attacking the audience".

The movie was VERY clear...the entity was powered by Micahs attempts to communicate, and his threats...the movie does NOT say that the camera gave the entity strength. To say that it does is to ignore the facts of the film and take a guess because you are trying to make sense of that ridiculous ending. The entity did not care at all about that camera...it did plenty of stuff right in front of it...yet in the end she either attacks the viewers ala Ghost Rider, or she eats the camera. She went face first toward the lens. That is NOT how you attack something, unless you are biting it. I am well aware that her eating the camera makes no sense...but the fact remains that she attacked it mouth-first.[/blackout]

Yes, this movie sets itself up as "real." You know what else the movie establishes throughout? [BLACKOUT]That this demon that's been haunting her is real as well. And it's getting stronger and capable of the supernatural. Is Micah getting thrown at the camera any more reality breaking than a boardgame igniting itself then putting itself out? The ending fully reinforces the content of the entire movie.[/BLACKOUT]

 

[CELTICPRED]

i was listening to the radio the guy asked some girl if the movie was scary, she replied saying it was hilarious and her whole theater was cracking up, first time i heard a review like that for this film

A few have said that around here.

 

[ManofmyWord]

This film is not "Scary" but very, very unsettling. That said, I loved it. We sat front row with a Midnight showing and the crowd was very into it. One woman even screamed when the film started fast forwarding.

Spoiler

Yes, It's easy, simple scares. But thats why it's weird. Stuff like slamming doors, flickering lights, creaks and groans are things based in the real world. I think it was genius to build up the first night like they did. You don't quite know if things ARE happening or what, then the door moves ever so slightly. That simple thing freaked my crowd out because of the tension.

The Actors are actually pretty good, and they LOOK like REAL PEOPLE.

I got to admit the "offical" ending was ruined by the tv spots. The scene that got me the Most freaked was the

Spoiler

Footsteps in Powder. They were CLAWS

 

[CELTICPRED]

The scene that got me the Most freaked was the

Spoiler

Footsteps in Powder. They were CLAWS

Well it was revealed that....

Spoiler

 

[Arbiter]

i liked the movie

but i dont care if she was the hottest chick in the world, if she didnt want to leave after seeing [blackout]demon footprints in the powder [/blackout]then **** her.

but this guy stays through that AND after she was [blackout]dragged out of bed and down the hall by an invisible demon[/blackout].

 

[Heretic]

Yes, this movie sets itself up as "real." You know what else the movie establishes throughout? [BLACKOUT]That this demon that's been haunting her is real as well. And it's getting stronger and capable of the supernatural. Is Micah getting thrown at the camera any more reality breaking than a boardgame igniting itself then putting itself out? The ending fully reinforces the content of the entire movie.[/BLACKOUT]

[BLACKOUT]I believe that the entity had grown in strength and could throw Micah. I do NOT believe that the entity...having achieved his final goal of possessing the girl, would then care to attack the camera lens to give a cheap scare to whoever viewed the film.[/BLACKOUT]

 

[Nightmare]

Glad to hear this beat out the new saw over the weekend box office.