Paranormal Activity

Are you afraid her screams while you're dragging her are going to alert the authorities?

I'll wait until the Rohypnol softens her up!

Has this been on DVD at any point? This seems really familiar for some reason.

The movie, I mean, not Heidi's drugging and subsequent kidnapping.

No DVD. It was part of a film festival a couple years back and there was a lot of waves, but Paramount bought it up and hid it planning a remake. The film tested so well as it is, that they've finally decided to release the original and not go forward with the remake.

It had really good reviews from that film festival, which really annoyed the shit out of fans because no one could go see it. It's frustrating they took so long to give it even this tiny of a release.

Heidi's drugging and subsequent kidnapping reminds me of our first date. Ahhhhhh, romance.

http://www.paranormalmovie.com/losangeles/

for anyone in LA who wants to attend a sneak peak of the film next thursday!!!!

I'm trying to get anyone from the Cleveland area to demand this. If you go to the Paranormal Activity official site you can request or what they call "Demand it". Just click the Demand button for Cleveland in the link here and help a girl out if you are in this area! lol

http://eventful.com/performers/paranormal-activity-/P0-001-000212499-6/c...

So, I saw Paranormal Activity last night and I think my brain is so desensitized not even scary movies are scary. I actually got bored. Handheld filmed films just irk me and I noticed the editing, and I'm not a good suspense build up type person.

I suppose if you never watch movies, let alone horror films and don't read up on ghost, demons and the paranormal as much I do, yeah, totally frickin scary, you might even sleep with a light on.

Me, on the other hand, was only "creeped out" by two scenes and felt I had seen scarier Ghost Hunter episodes when it was all over.

I saw it again last night as well, and I do agree there are moments that feel "slow". The times in between the hauntings lose a little bit of momentum. That said, I thought the creepy bits were excellently done.

The makers of films like A Haunting in Connecticut should take note of films like Paranormal Activity; it's the wrong move to use fancy editing and MTV gloss when you could have simple and organic scares like these.

Holy crap...this film came in #4 at the box office for Friday...with only 159 screens!!

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/daily/chart/

Hellion, its 'Blair Witch' syndrome. I mean that in two ways: 1) They are using the handheld cameras as a plot device as an excuse to not have expensive cameras or an expensive cinematographer. and 2) They are trying to build suspense in the same way Blair Witch did.

I am not sure I like this kind of suspense either, and after about 3 films did it after Blair Witch, I am kind of tired of the 'handheld camera in the storyline' bullpoopy. I mean, Cloverfield and Quarantine were pushing it. Diary of the Dead made a failure of it. And lesser-known films like The Last Broadcast were able to use it but only because it hadn't gotten old yet at that point.

I do enjoy some hardcore shit, though, I am beginning to realize. I am super desensitized, and while I can appreciate a non-effects suspense film like Rebecca or The Haunting as works of art and cinematography, art direction, and direction, I am not scared by them.

Himan Centipede, man. That's what I'm looking for. Something sick and stupid and unecessary and completely filthy. That's what watching so many movies has done to me - I have numbed my nerve endings and now only filth and extremely horrifying scenes can make me squirm. I even though 'Inside' was pretty tame.

WAY pushing it. Quarantine was the worse of the two. There are "shaky cam" scenes where crazy stuff is happening, and the camera guy starts wildly zooming in and out. It's shaky cam/crazy zooming work. Who the hell is going to start zooming in and out when crazy undead crap is attacking?

[REC] is a bit more restrained and I thought better overall.

As far as Paranormal Activity, the scarier bits are not 'shaky cam'; the camera is actually mounted on a fixed tripod and isn't moving at all.

The film opened in Boston on Thursday and I dragged my husband to see it yesterday. We both really enjoyed it, and it is a great film for anyone who is interested in making a film but has limited resources, because the filmmakers made the stripped-down set and effects really work for them. I have a particular fascination with sound in horror, and this film also does some nice stuff with that. We saw it at a noon showing with maybe half a dozen other people in the theatre, but that really worked because it meant we could hear all the nuanced sounds used in the film.

Sound is SO important, I agree kestrell! glad to know it works well in PA.

Yeah, I get the Blair Witch and suspense stuff. I'm just not a big fan of movies in first person p.o.v. That doesn't mean I think some of the stories were bad. I liked Rec and Cloverfield stories. Blair Witch and Paranormal Activity stories were fine. They were simple and to the point. Acting was fine.
I do think the marketing campaigns are brilliant and I'm more interested in learning about that than I am about how they made the film for so cheap, especially since studios are cranking out millions for these films that are absolute garbage.

I understand Paranormal Activity was an effective horror film and very scary to some people. I guess I just bought into the hoopla of the movie after reading the reviews. I wanted it to scare me silly, it should have, and it didn't. I am disappointed. *shrugs*

Yeah, I've been long worried the hype will hurt some people's experience. This is a good movie to go into blind, or fairly blind. It's a solid film but it can never live up to some of the hyperbole floating around.

This did end up being released here in Cleveland on Friday and I did get to view this film. I agree the marketing campaigns are genius starting with Blair Witch. It's the underground, internet word of mouth and honestly considering the cost of television advertizing this campaign had to be pretty cheap.

As far as the film goes, I'm totally jaded but still found this to be effectively creepy in its minimalist fashion. There is a lot of down time but that was effective in making me wonder when and where and what was going to be my next jump scare. It does lose some momentum with all the down time but I still couldn't complain. You do remain slightly nervous throughout. They just slowly ratchet up the events that occur and it really works. The end came off looking rather good and truly was a freak out with the audience. That is also the fun in this film is audience reaction. Some guy kept saying "oh shit" and that was cracking me up! lol

7.1 million over the weekend while only showing in 159 theaters. Came in 5th over all.

CNN has a story on it:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Movies/10/12/paranormal.activity.movie/i...

pretty good marketing campaign!

Question is how many other films and studios will have the guts to try this out on a non-horror film...

On a non-horror? Not many. I think they only did it this time because Blair Witch did it before. And I think Blair Witch did it because they had no marketing budget so they HAD to come up with an alternate, cheap, strategy.

The gunpowder for this tactic was already loaded in the barrel. They had suppressed the film for two years, not because they were planning this tactic, but because they were considering remaking it with a big budget. Two years ago, many horror outlets saw it at a festival, and all raved wildly. It's been looked at as a lost treasure since then, and many a fan has lamented not being able to see it.

By suppressing it for two years, it really laid the groundwork for this approach. People were dying to see it from the reviews a couple years back. By teasing people, acting as if they had to do this "Demand It" crap, they were exploiting a resource that was already there, building upon the existing hype and people's desire to see it.

You couldn't readily repeat this sort of tactic with just any old thing.

Anyone else Demand It in their area and receive an email to have your name in the credits? Thought it was a cool idea, which of course means I have to buy the thing now and I haven't even seen it yet! Clever.

Why couldn't they have done this for a good movie, like "Trick 'r Treat"?

my name was in the credits of a movie about lesbians humping couches and i was given a copy because it was cooler than paranormal activity and my beanie is tighter and blacker than yours, yo.

Can't argue with any of that, really. Yo.

Dude, what about Bette Davis rocking a beanie?

And it has a kitty on it!!1

How tight is Bette's beanie? That's what we're asking.

You can't see it, but her brain is actually being pushed out her ear, which is why she's lying on her side like that. THAT'S how tight, man.

Tight.