Paranormal Activity

[Gerald]

I saw this last night at a packed midnight screening. Very spooky. It's kind of sweeping across the country based entirely on word of mouth and guerilla marketing. It's a Blair Witch-esque docu-style POV horror film about a nice young San Diego couple being tormented at night by a demonic haunting. Unlike Blair Witch, though, you actually see and experience a lot more here and not everything is confined to the imagination. I highly recommend it if you like being freaked out at the movies.

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There's another trailer that I would urge you to not watch because it gives away a crucial shot that still jolted me even though I was expecting it the whole time.

[Gerald]

Find out if it's playing in your neck of the woods (if it's not you can demand it through a petition site):

http://www.paranormalmovie.com/theaters.html

[razorboy]

Shaky cam gives me migraines.

[Gerald]

Shaky cam gives me migraines.

It's not that bad here. It's stationary a lot of the time.

[realmenhatelife]

They announced it's playing Philly but it's only doing like a weekend and only midnight shows. I was hoping it would be a little more accessible. Hopefully my little second run indie theater will get it eventually so I dont have to see this on DVD.

[foodcourtdruide]

This movie looked better when it was called Blair Witch Project

[Gerald]

This movie looked better when it was called Blair Witch Project

I'll give it a pass on ripping off the "found footage of actual events" technique because the end result was much more memorable and unsettling. This movie I thought lived up to the hype much more than Witch which left me feeling cheated, underwhelmed and almost angered.

[Gerald]

They announced it's playing Philly but it's only doing like a weekend and only midnight shows.

I think they're doing that for reasons of atmosphere and mystique. Great move in my opinion because that's the ideal setting to see it. Packed auditorium scared witless in the wee hours of the night. Although seeing it by yourself in an empty house on home video would probably also complement the impact.

[realmenhatelife]

I think they're doing that for reasons of atmosphere and mystique. Great move in my opinion because that's the ideal setting to see it. Packed auditorium scared witless in the wee hours of the night. Although seeing it by yourself in an empty house on home video would probably also complement the impact.

Well tell them to kiss my balls, I'm too old to go to midnight movies in the city and if they'd like my money they'd better sell the fuck out right quick.

[JohnGacysCrawlSpace]

What an unimpressive trailer.

[TheMojoPin]

Looks one of the bajillion crapy "ghost hunter" shows on cable the last few years.

[yojimbo7248]

it could be interesting if it goes the Antichrist route (well minus bloody ejaculations and DIY clitorectomies) and shows the couple's relationship deteriorate as the demonic attacks increase. i'll give it a try.

[Furtherman]

Looks one of the bajillion crapy "ghost hunter" shows on cable the last few years.

It's embarrassing those shows are so highly rated.

[Gerald]

it could be interesting if it goes the Antichrist route (well minus bloody ejaculations and DIY clitorectomies) and shows the couple's relationship deteriorate as the demonic attacks increase. i'll give it a try.

Don't expect von Trier-caliber acting.

It's not revolutionary in conception. Its chief aim is to provide the willies and on that level it succeeds tremendously.

It's different from an awful ghost chaser show, though, where alleged professionals go to historically significant locales with ghost infestation and flaunt their acting inexperience as they pretend to channel spirits. Those shows are uniformly garbage. Here we're presented with a couple experiencing scientifically unexplainable phenomena in their home who resort to using recording equipment as part of their effort to get to the bottom of what's plaguing them during the wee hours of the night.

I can understand being apprehensive based on marketing that doesn't do it justice in order to preserve key money shots and I know my word doesn't carry any weight around here but I want to reiterate again that if you're the type who likes nothing better than being scared at the movies you should run to the nearest theatre playing a midnight showing of this. Get in on the movement now before it's playing five shows a day at every shopping mall from coast to coast while every Tom, Dick and Harry in the blogosphere is whining about how overrated and unworthy of its sleeper success it is.

[Gerald]

'Paranormal Activity': Do midnight sell-outs suggest it's the next 'Blair Witch'?


Producer Jason Blum spent nearly two years bringing the ultra-low-budget thriller "Paranormal Activity" to theaters. "It finally feels," he says, "like we're entering the third act."

When Blum saw long lines snaking around the ArcLight Hollywood last weekend for midnight showings of writer-director Oren Peli's $15,000 tale of things that go bump in the night, he choked up. Had he visited the box offices selling tickets for this coming weekend's late-night showings, Blum might start bawling like a baby.

After taking the movie to a dozen college towns for a series of midnight-only screenings last week, Paramount Pictures is cautiously expanding the film's release, adding another 21 cities. The film will be shown in midnight-only screenings on Thursday, Friday and Saturday night, and theater owners say few seats are left for many showings. The ArcLight (which has other late-night screenings besides midnight) already has sold out many of this weekend's shows.

"The sales are incredible," says Maurice Peel, a manager at Santa Cruz's Nickelodeon & Del Mar Theatres. "We are looking to sell out every show this weekend."

"People are coming from Pittsburgh, Indianapolis -- four or five hours away," says Eric Brembeck, the owner of the Studio 35 Cinema & Drafthouse in Columbus, Ohio. The demand for "Paranormal Activity" is so strong, Brembeck says, that he's thinking of finally getting an online ticketing service for his 300-seat auditorium.

"I haven't seen anything like this for a long time," says Michael Stockhaus, a senior manager at the AMC Loews Universal Cineplex 20 in Orlando. "The level of excitement -- I can't compare it to anything. You just didn't see it coming."

It's far too early to tell if "Paranormal Activity" can approach the success of the almost as inexpensive "Blair Witch Project," which grossed more than $140 million in 1999. But the early indications for "Paranormal Activity" -- lots of Tweets, Yahoo searches and online demands to bring the film to cities around the country -- are encouraging. What's more, the movie is selling out with hardly any paid advertising.

On Oct. 9, Paramount will bring "Paranormal Activity" to a total of 40 markets, with showings at all hours. It will be over that weekend, most likely, when the industry will know if the film is a true phenomenon or a flash in the pan. "It's not like we're opening Champagne yet," Blum says. "But we just continue to get positive responses: 'It's the scariest movie I've ever seen.' "




http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/entertainmentnewsbuzz/2009/10/paranormal-activity-do-midnight-sellouts-suggest-its-the-next-blair-witch.html

[red_red_red]

'Paranormal Activity': Do midnight sell-outs suggest it's the next 'Blair Witch'?



http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/entertainmentnewsbuzz/2009/10/paranormal-activity-do-midnight-sellouts-suggest-its-the-next-blair-witch.html
holy crap you are worse than spam

[red_red_red]

if i could, i'd post man on man love in here

[Gerald]

holy crap you are worse than spam

Oh, put a sock in it. I'm just trying to keep people in the R&F community abreast of the enthusiasm that's spreading across the country for a "little film that could" which many are attesting to be up there with the great scare classics of our time. I don't have a financial stake in the success or failure of the film but as a horror fan I'd like to see it succeed so I'm happy to support the cause and bang its drum.

[Gerald]

if i could, i'd post man on man love in here

If you're really that irritable and aren't just posturing you'll do it.

[TheMojoPin]

if i could, i'd post man on man love in here

How about some ghost-on-man love?

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_6yubLpdezfQ/ScB9aTUcrNI/AAAAAAAAAWA/_x5LX7KS-j0/s400/gay_ghost.jpg

[red_red_red]

How about some ghost-on-man love?

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_6yubLpdezfQ/ScB9aTUcrNI/AAAAAAAAAWA/_x5LX7KS-j0/s400/gay_ghost.jpg
:laugh:
i'll have to settle for that....fucking rules

[KingGeno]

Little film that could suck my balls. Looks terrible.

[red_red_red]

Oh, put a sock in it. I'm just trying to keep people in the R&F community abreast of the enthusiasm that's spreading across the country for a "little film that could" which many are attesting to be up there with the great scare classics of our time. I don't have a financial stake in the success or failure of the film but as a horror fan I'd like to see it succeed so I'm happy to support the cause and bang its drum.
bang away sir

trains and whatnot

[red_red_red]

If you're really that irritable and aren't just posturing you'll do it.
it's against the cunting rules for me to post such things. perhaps if you weren't a spammer you would know that

[Gerald]

Oh man, this thread hasn't unfolded the way I envisioned. I figured the interest of all would be piqued and there would be post after post of people expressing verbal salivation for their rabid desire to see it. I'll check back here in a few weeks after the wide rollout to see if the tide has turned toward the jubilant anticipation or celebration I was banking on or hoping for. My absence in this thread during that span might not vindicate the merits of the film but it will almost certainly exonerate me from these harmful allegations of spammery that have arisen.

[KingGeno]

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y191/cosmicherosa/cool-story-bro.jpg

[red_red_red]

Oh man, this thread hasn't unfolded the way I envisioned. I figured the interest of all would be piqued and there would be post after post of people expressing verbal salivation for their rabid desire to see it. I'll check back here in a few weeks after the wide rollout to see if the tide has turned toward the jubilant anticipation or celebration I was banking on or hoping for. My absence in this thread during that span might not vindicate the merits of the film but it will almost certainly exonerate me from these harmful allegations of spammery that have arisen.
don't let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya

[KingGeno]

I was unaware that people had to love this movie, and couldn't criticize how it looks. Stop crying, Mr. Posh Fancy Speaker guy person.

[red_red_red]

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y191/cosmicherosa/cool-story-bro.jpg
:laugh:
i'm intrigued...too bad i know how to download movies for free

[red_red_red]

I was unaware that people had to love this movie, and couldn't criticize how it looks. Stop crying, Mr. Posh Fancy Speaker guy person.
To Gerald!! :drunk:

[TooLowBrow]

the only 'ghost' that ive ever experienced was debunked when my brother admitted that HE was the one who had accidentally thrown out the kitchen sponge.

before that it was all creepy 'missing sponge' ghostly mysteriousnesshttp://www.aquaticcommunity.com/aquariumforum/images/smilies/ghost-smiley.gif

[red_red_red]

i have demonic possessions, beer makes em go away

[Gerald]

I feel like a real heel now. My overeagerness to express enthusiasm and increase awareness for a film I dug has been horribly perverted. I hope the participants in this thread can still find it within themselves to give the film a fair shake and purge all thoughts of what's transpired here from their minds when seeing it.

[red_red_red]

I feel like a real heel now. My overeagerness to express enthusiasm and increase awareness for a film I dug has been horribly perverted. I hope the participants in this thread can still find it within themselves to give the film a fair shake and purge all thoughts of what's transpired here from their minds when seeing it.
we always shake and purge

i think paulo has an alter ego

[Gerald]

Okay, I'm vacating this thread for real after this post. I won't lie, I probably won't return. Just remember, the only thing scarier than me trying to navigate my way through a message board with social grace is what you will encounter throughout this film!

[TheMojoPin]

What an odd duck.

[thepaulo]

What an odd duck.

fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuck

http://www.paranormalactivity-movie.com/

[Gerald]

I'm temporarily back just to pass on Ebert's :thumbup: review:

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091007/REVIEWS/910089996


"Paranormal Activity" is an ingenious little horror film, so well made it's truly scary, that arrives claiming it's the real thing. Without any form of conventional opening or closing credits, it begins by thanking "the families of Micah Sloat and Katie Featherson" and closes with one of those "current whereabouts unknown" title cards and a screen of copyright notices. This was apparently a film made without a director, a writer, a producer, grips, makeup, sound, catering or a honey wagon.

All of the footage is presented as if it had been discovered after the fact. The story device is that Micah shot it himself. There isn't a single shot that violates that presumption, although a few seem technically impossible without other hands on the camera. Those are hard to notice.

Katie is a graduate student of English. Micah is a day trader. They've been together three years, and have now moved into a house in San Diego that doesn't seem much lived in. It's well enough furnished, but everything looks new and there's no clutter. Micah greets Katie out front one day by filming her on his new video camera, which she observes looks bigger than his other one.

They've been bothered by indications of some sort of paranormal activity in an upstairs bedroom. Micah's bright idea is to film in the house, leaving the camera running as a silent sentinel while they sleep. Like any man with a new toy, he becomes obsessed with this notion -- the whole point, for him, isn't Katie's fear but his film. After one big scare, she asks him incredulously, did you actually go back to pick up your camera?

One benefit of the story device is that for long periods of time the camera is ostensibly left on with no one running it. It's on a tripod at the end of their bed while they sleep, and we see events while their eyes are closed. Some of these events and very minor, and I won't describe any of them. The fact that they happen at all is the whole point. That they seem to happen by themselves, witnessed by a static camera, makes them eerie, especially since there are some shots that seem impossible without special effects, and there's no visible evidence of f/x, looking as closely as we can.

He is frequently off camera. She is on cam for almost every shot, and of Katie Featherson's performance it's enough to say it is flawless for the purposes of this film. We're not talking Meryl Streep here, we're talking about a young woman who looks and talks absolutely like she might be an ordinary college student who has just moved in with her boyfriend. There's not a second of "acting."

Micah behaves, shall I say, just like a man. You know, the kind who will never stop and ask directions. Katie has been bothered by some sort of paranormal presence since she was a child, and now she's seriously disturbed, and Micah's response isn't sympathy but a determination to get it all down on film.

They do call in a "psychic expert" (Michael Bayouth) but he's no help. He specializes in ghosts, he explains, and he knows by walking in the door that what's haunting them isn't a ghost but some sort of demonic presence. He recommends a demonologist, but alas this man is "away for a few days." That's the plot's most unrealistic detail. Having spent some time in my credulous days hanging about the Bodhi Tree bookstore in L.A., I would suggest that California is a state with more practicing demonologists than published poets.

I learn from IMDb that "Paranormal Activity" does indeed have a writer-director, Oren Peli, and other technical credits. But like "The Blair Witch Project," with which it's routinely compared, it goes to great lengths to seem like a film found after the event. It works. It illustrates one of my favorite points, that silence and waiting can be more entertaining than frantic fast-cutting and berserk f/x. For extended periods here, nothing at all is happening, and believe me, you won't be bored.


I hope you guys like the movie if you see it.

[dino_electropolis]

I'm temporarily back just to pass on Ebert's :thumbup: review:

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091007/REVIEWS/910089996




I hope you guys like the movie if you see it.

i've heard good things about this flick. Anxious to see what its all about.


And gerald (whoever you are) dont let the ass clowns on this site muscle you. There all a bunch of poser douchebags, who are sadly aware of their own douchiness, despite their baddass avatars and what not.

[realmenhatelife]

Here is an easy way to tell how you're going to react to this movie. If you liked Blair Witch Project, go see this.

I'm a sucker for more low key, atmospheric stuff, and I always appreciate the use of physical effects over CGI. There are some acting problems, and some structure problems, but the movie doesn't come off as cheap.

The biggest problem is the ending, which is satisfying at first but then makes an ill advised gesture. Apparently this is Steven Spielbergs fault. I've read what some of the unconfirmed endings were, and I'm pretty sure they all would've been better.

There's a definite catch 22. If the movie had a lot of money it would've ironed out all of the story and acting issues, but throwing money into the production would've taken away the realistic feel and lo fi tricks that make the movie so good.

[GregoryJoseph]

My 14 year old niece is a horror movie fanatic. She's begging me to take her to see this.

Should I?

Anything inappropriate for a young girl in the movie?

[dino_electropolis]

My 14 year old niece is a horror movie fanatic. She's begging me to take her to see this.

Should I?

Anything inappropriate for a young girl in the movie?


Only her disturbed uncle sitting next to her.:tongue:

[underdog]

Why does everyone dislike Gerald?

[IamFogHat]

Why does everyone dislike Gerald?

His avatar looks like a weird version of Jerry Stiller. It bugs me and probably everyone else.

[TheMojoPin]

Why does everyone dislike Gerald?

I always just assumed he is Paul-O's sober alter ego.

[IamFogHat]

I always just assumed he is Paul-O's sober alter ego.

So he's somnambulant?

[realmenhatelife]

My 14 year old niece is a horror movie fanatic. She's begging me to take her to see this.

Should I?

Anything inappropriate for a young girl in the movie?

If we're just talking level of hardness it's actually pretty tame, so if she see's other modern horror movies shes seen much worse.

[keithy_19]

I know a few people who went to see this and thought it was incredibly scary. It's an interesting idea.

But you should all see the film I'm making which will be out around 2011-early 2012.

[thepaulo]

I found it scary and inventive but with many of the same problems that caused a Blair Witch backlash.

[realmenhatelife]

I found it scary and inventive but with many of the same problems that caused a Blair Witch backlash.

The major problem that causes a backlash is that people are douche bags.

I wish they hadn't blown the foreshadowing, but then again they might not have intended to foreshadow anything.

[thepaulo]

The major problem that causes a backlash is that people are douche bags.

I wish they hadn't blown the foreshadowing, but then again they might not have intended to foreshadow anything.

That should be factored into any marketing campaign....
people are douchebags.

[hanso]

That should be factored into any marketing campaign....
people are douchebags.

Make it a Doors song

[Friday]

i loved it.
didn't read too many reviews so i was able to enjoy everything fresh and unspoiled.

the only thing that made it rough to watch were the savages all around me who wouldn't shut their mouths.

i went with a friend who had already seen it at a midnight screening in the city and she said the audience at her first screening was quiet and immersed in the great tension of the film.
apparently, the new jersey brain cannot handle going an hour and a half without texting and/or commenting inappropriately. ugh.

even with the loudmouths, the movie still lived up to my expectations... and i still have the lights on in my apartment.
we will probably go again in a few weeks after all of the jerks have come and gone... and hopefully bring some first timers so we can enjoy their reactions.

three-toed clarence ftw!

[boonanas]

I don't know what it is with this movie. Even though when I saw it, everyone was respectable. But it just seems like since this movie had such a "demand" and that it was wide released due to the fan's "demand", people just feel they're entitled to heckle during it. I've heard many a tale about how no one would SHUT UP during it.

Anyways, loved it. Highly recommended.

[yojimbo7248]

apparently, the new jersey brain cannot handle going an hour and a half without texting and/or commenting inappropriately. ugh!

Long Island brain has same inability. it's what we as a society get for parents being too scared, sensitive to tell their kids to shut the fuck up and smack them if they don't.

[realmenhatelife]

Movie behavior has just changed, I cant remember the last time I was at a movie where someone didn't do something that was disruptive.

It stinks for a movie like this because it really needs you to pay attention to it and commit to be effective. So the person is texting or whatever, never gets sucked in, then starts texting more because they think the movie is boring.

It has the disadvantage of being low budget so certain people will knock it for not being gory, or really big. And it's hyped as being scary so people feel challenged by that and want to purposefully not enjoy it so they can feel superior. Like when people try and guess the twist endings of movies as if the movie is a big trivia question.

[Fez4PrezN2008]

We saw it on a whim last night. It does a good job building tension and providing some creepy vibes, but there were part that I just couldn't keep suspending disbelief. Really only two main characters and two minor characters in the whole film. It seemed like they ran out of $ before they could introduce another character that they talked about. It one of those movies that the motive for any of the shit is never even thought of by the producer nor apparent to the viewer. It's an hour and a half long version of those video clips on youtube that ask you to watch something closely and then last part has a mask screem at you. I give it one and a half demon spawns out of 5 demon spawns.

[Fallon]

I didn't care for it at all. Katie should have put her foot down and make the boyfriend cut the shit. She was way too passive especially after the ghost guy told them not to aggravate the demon.

They both got what they deserve for not listening.

I know it was a low budget flick, but I feel gypped that the ending wasn't visually pleasing. They built the movie up and it ended with me having to use my imagination. Fuckers.

[Fallon]

i went with a friend who had already seen it at a midnight screening in the city and she said the audience at her first screening was quiet and immersed in the great tension of the film.
apparently, the new jersey brain cannot handle going an hour and a half without texting and/or commenting inappropriately. ugh.

That's why I download movies. Don't have to bother with that crap!

[meanmrbill]

Oh man, this thread hasn't unfolded the way I envisioned. I figured the interest of all would be piqued and there would be post after post of people expressing verbal salivation for their rabid desire to see it. I'll check back here in a few weeks after the wide rollout to see if the tide has turned toward the jubilant anticipation or celebration I was banking on or hoping for. My absence in this thread during that span might not vindicate the merits of the film but it will almost certainly exonerate me from these harmful allegations of spammery that have arisen.
Hey, man, I saw the film and it was legitimately scary. Not mind-blowing but that is a good thing.

[newport king]

i got a screener copy, apparently a completely different ending than what was in theaters. my copy she stabs him downstairs, you dont see his body, she comes upstairs and sits on the floor for about 18 hours of fast forward camera, then the cops show up, she makes a move toward them and they shoot and kill her.

friends have told me the theater ending and it sounds better.

i can only imagine the animals that show up to a movie like this and talk throughout.

id say it was an average movie. very respectable for the budget it was on. there were parts that i liked. the problem i have with it is the hype. we always go for it. blair witch, 28 days later, paranormal...all those trailers basically say "scariest fucking thing you're ever gonna see" and it NEVER is.

the only people that would be terrified of this is teenage girls who weren't old enough to remember the epic failure that was the blair witch.

i agree FEZ4PREZ its a 1 1/2 hour long youtube clip thats all build up.

[realmenhatelife]

i got a screener copy, apparently a completely different ending than what was in theaters. my copy she stabs him downstairs, you dont see his body, she comes upstairs and sits on the floor for about 18 hours of fast forward camera, then the cops show up, she makes a move toward them and they shoot and kill her.

friends have told me the theater ending and it sounds better.

i can only imagine the animals that show up to a movie like this and talk throughout.

id say it was an average movie. very respectable for the budget it was on. there were parts that i liked. the problem i have with it is the hype. we always go for it. blair witch, 28 days later, paranormal...all those trailers basically say "scariest fucking thing you're ever gonna see" and it NEVER is.

the only people that would be terrified of this is teenage girls who weren't old enough to remember the epic failure that was the blair witch.

i agree FEZ4PREZ its a 1 1/2 hour long youtube clip thats all build up.

What's really funny is that I loved Blair Witch, I thought it completely lived up to the hype, and I would've preferred the ending you got on your screener. My biggest problem with the movie was the hacky ending when the entire movie had been slow and eerie.

[KingGeno]

This movie was one of the worst movies I've ever seen.

[realmenhatelife]

This movie was one of the worst movies I've ever seen.

Do you typically like these kinds of movies?