PARANORMAL ACTIVITY (2007)

ok. you will either be totally bored or totally freaked out by this film. the obvious and inevitable comparison is to the blair witch project, the only other ultra low budget modern minimalist horror film to gain massive mainstream success, but where the blair witch was all about the fear of being lost in the forest, stalked by an unseen malevolent presence, paranormal activity plays on the same fear of an unknown and unseen stalker transported into the comfort and assumed safety of your own home. personally, i really liked this movie. i appreciated the fact that it relied on the slow build up of tension and atmosphere rather than on traditional shock tactics and special effects. that being said, very little actually happens, which is why i can see a lot of people being bored by paranormal activity. although i didn't find it as terrifying as some other people in the theatre obviously did (there were some seriously fucking ridiculous reactions), overall the film was pretty effective. the acting was relatively solid and believable (especially katie featherston) and maybe if it had been edited and presented differently i would have accepted it as genuine. i've got to give the filmmakers credit for making something far more frightening with far less money than any hollywood c.g.i. heavy shitpile (and subsequently raking in millions of dollars). i would definitely recommend it to anyone into horror who's looking for something different, just be prepared to be deeply annoyed by the people sitting around you.