Paranormal Activity

What is it with American 'hype'? I went to see 'Paranormal Activa' this weekend after being hypnotised by the massive marketing ploy which accompanied the film. I was looking forward to a thrill-fest of intense drama, convincing performances and spooky goings-on but was sorely disappointed as I watched the hype melt away, and filth come to the forefront.

Meet Katie and Micah; a typical homely couple who appear to be so financially secure (neither of them work) that they can afford to mope and plop around the house all day fiddling with beads, trinkets and computers. Luckily, to spice up this drab and unappealing set-up (after a few creaky floors and leaving the window open) Katie admits to Micah that she has been haunted by a demon her whole life and suggests that to stop the creeky thumping noises and 'light-flicky-on-and-offy' they should invite a spiritualist into their home to assess the situation.

As the cliches begin to build up, the spiritualist arrives, spouts the usual jibberish then 'senses' the demon before chickening out and recommending that his friend; a demonologist, solve the problem. Predictably, Micah doesn't take the matter seriously and jests about the idea of a demon plaguing his girlfriend; but as doors continue to voluntarily drift ajar and the loud thumping persists, Micah becomes more interested in the phenomena and then thats when the fun really begins. With a ghostly flick of a light switch, Micah becomes Egon Spenglar, ghostbuster extraordinaire, and begins to investigate performing a variety of ludicrous experiments such as 'Micah's Talc Test' whereby he sprinkles talc outside the bedroom and onto the stairs in the vain hope of capturing some unearthly footprints (which in true Ghostbuster fashion, he does).

As the film progresses; with the seemingly endless footage of an open bedroom door (who sleeps with their bedroom door wide open?), the demon begins to get more and more restless and begins banging louder, slamming doors, stomping up the stairs, pissing around in the loft and generally being a nuisance. Tedious and unoriginal, the film continues to be rather stale and uneventful, until the finale. In which is probably the only decent moment in the film, the invisible demon gets so wound up with Micah's persistent ghostbusting that it drags Katie from her bed screaming and down the corridor (presumably to the toilet). This is a well executed scene (presumably green screen) and unfortunate that it comes at the end of the film because as the film finally picks up, it ends.

Paranormal Activity has been produced quite clearly to make money. Unsurprisingly, with a plot this thin, all the cliches are there; invisible spirits, ouija boards, night vision camera work, the disbelieving and somewhat annoying boyfriend, screaming, demonic possession, light-flicky-on-and-off and even the terrifying 'turning the taps on and off' scenario. In fact, as the cliches build up, you realise that this somewhat cheap and nasty love child of 'The Blair Witch Project' and 'Drag Me To Hell' (both of which are superior) is all hype and no trousers. The lack of realism stands out a mile and only cements the fact that this is a poorly thought through idea with 'plot' holes so wide the earth might actually fall into them.

The acting performances are admirable and the dialog is fine, but the ridiculous sequence of events and their casual reaction to 'sorting the problem out properly' leave you wishing the demon would show itself and eat their heads. I felt no emotional connection to the characters and when Micah is killed I almost whooped for joy. Overall, the film is a cheap, flimsy and hap-hazard attempt to scare you out of your wits whilst making the production company lots of money. The only scare arguably is when Katie gets dragged out of her bed by the leg but apart from that, it's as frightening as a 7 month old yoghurt.

Cheap and nasty but at least it's short. 2/5.