I’m one of the biggest babies when it comes to scary movies, so going to see “Paranormal Activity,” with all the hype surrounding it—including claims that it’s one of the scariest movies ever made—was therefore a feat in itself for me.
The movie’s documentary style is definitely what contributes to its scariness. The opening scene shows Micah, one of only three characters in the whole movie, filming his girlfriend, Katie, as she pulls into the driveway. Their relationship and interaction seems so normal that you can easily imagine yourself and your boyfriend (or girlfriend) in their places, which further contributes to its being so scary.
Katie has been plagued paranormal activities since she was eight and recently she and Micah moved in together. Since living together, there has been some activity, which inspires Micah to buy a video camera in order to film them sleeping at night. I don’t know if it’s the night vision, but the slight movement of the door within the first couple nights of filming is freaky to watch on screen. It’s not necessarily the fact that the door moved, but that the innocent couple silently sleeping right next to the door is completely unaware.
Micah reviews the overnight taping each morning (as a side note, I wonder when he found the time to scan through all of the footage, both visual and audio, and still work a job, but I’ll play along). At one point, he suggests using an Ouija board in order to find out what kind of paranormal they’re dealing with, disregarding the psychologist’s advice.
The overnight footage is shown, starting from September 2006 and running until October of the same year. As time progresses, the paranormal activity increases in severity, including a couple daytime instances. One night Katie sleepwalks (or is possessed and walking outside) and Micah finds her sitting in a swinging chair. Anyone who, like me, has been known to sleepwalk, identifies with Katie. I was horrified to think that I could be Katie, with absolutely no control over my nighttime activity.
The couple’s footage includes more activity involving the door, as well as nights when powdery footprints are discovered and footsteps heard on the staircase. Not all that scary, right? Well, after leaving the theatre you begin to wonder what happens to you while you’re sleeping. With no camera to capture the action, these things could be going on completely unnoticed.
The conclusion of the film is much like the other activity throughout the movie – on leaving I thought: “That wasn’t so bad.” I even heard a few moviegoers saying they wanted their $10 back— but I can’t help wondering how they slept that night. Maybe they had no problem, but I woke up at 2:41 a.m. (about the time that much of the paranormal activity was caught while Micah and Katie were sleeping) and was much more scared than I had been while in the theatre.
If you believe at all in the possibility of demonic possession or spiritual hauntings, the activity in this film will haunt you, too. The movie is not going to throw you over the edge and make you a true believer, but it will cause you to look around the room as you lie in your bed at night. You’ll find yourself wondering: is the door going to move, even just a little, while I’m sleeping? If I put out baby powder on my floor, what would I find the next day? You don’t know until you try it and buy a camera to film yourself.
"Paranormal Activity" will give you nightmares
Published: Friday, October 30, 2009
Updated: Friday, October 30, 2009 02:10
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