A week before Halloween 2015, audiences will be treated to the release of “Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension” – the sixth and thankfully final installment in the Paranormal Activity movie franchise. Israeli/American filmmaker Oren Peli launched the series in October 2007, and succeeded in creating a legendary work of horror art, one that can be appreciated by devout students of the game of film as well as anyone looking for an enjoyable scary movie.
“Paranormal Activity” is unique in its presentation, its intent not to be a fictional movie but rather a real life glimpse of actual events captured on tape and replayed after they have occurred.
The genre of found footage has been around for decades but wasn’t main stream popular until the release of “The Blair Witch Project” in 1999, and has gained considerable momentum in the early stages of the 21st Century.
“Paranormal Activity” introduces us to a young couple; Katie (Katie Featherston) and Micah (Micah Sloat) as Katie has just moved into Micah’s lavish San Diego suburban home.
Katie claims that since childhood an evil presence has been stalking her, and she now believes it has followed her into her new place of residence with Micah. Micah purchases a camcorder that he sets up in the couple’s bedroom to capture any nighttime supernatural activity.
The entire movie (perfect at 86 minutes) is displayed from the perspective of Micah’s camera. As such, the scope of vision is limited to a handful of feet directly in front of the lens – which adds a brilliant level of suspense to the movie.
The casting of Katie and Micah is perfect. Peli has the actors go by their real life names in order to reinforce the notion of believability, which is a stroke of genius. What couldn’t have been planned is the chemistry between the two leads.
The star of the movie is Katie Featherston, who manages to perfectly capture the sheer terror that exists inside of the character. Katie isn’t spooked by random sounds in the night as many leads are, rather she has been saddled with an intense burden that has plagued her since she was a child.
Micah is the opposite. A financially successful Alpha Male who totes the line of believing Katie and simply humoring her with the purchase of the camera. Like any typical male, Micah not only wants what is best for Katie, he wants to be the one fixes all of her problems.
As the camera begins to record, the benign activity quickly escalates and Katie and Micah’s enviable relationship begins to crack. The actors play off one another in a unique and plausible way. Katie knows something terrible is haunting her. Micah does his best to rationalize strange events, and seems aloof to the seriousness of the situation at the start. The pair is a perfect match.
Peli demonstrates a unique talent for telling a scary story, in that he uses suspense and mounting tension as a catalyst that plays along with tangible occurrences.
We watch the couple asleep at night, the camera shooting down the long and dark hallway that leads to the bedroom. We’re pretty sure something is going to happen and we wait. And wait. And wait. Never has watching a man and woman asleep in bed been more terrifying.
Another great aspect of the movie is that there isn’t a horrible fright in every scene. Sometimes the couple sleeps – and nothing happens. Peli resists the temptation to show something spooky in every frame, again solidifying reality and perfectly limiting the scares.
“Paranormal Activity” works in that it doesn’t waste time explaining the haunt. Sometimes, less is more and in particular when dealing with a horror movie, explanations aren’t always needed. Katie has been tormented by a demon since childhood, and the entity has now resurfaced. And that is all there is to it.
By keeping the characters, the setting, and the media used to tell the story as simple, the viewer feels the hopelessness of the situation, and can truly empathize with the people involved. With no score or soundtrack whatsoever, the camera records their lives with a timer in the corner slowly ticking away the seconds and minutes of each passing day as they attempt to deal with a truly terrifying and uncontrollable element.
Do me a favor. Turn off the lights when you watch “Paranormal Activity.” It will put you directly in touch with the perfection of horror. And you will definitely find yourself questioning…did I leave that door open?
by – Matt Christopher
