Paranormal Activty

I love watching horror movies. Funny thing is, I can't even remember the last time that a horror movie actually scared me. I guess it would be the Sixth Sense, but all the drama towards the end kinda spoiled it for me. I liked the first few Saw movies, but only because of the creative gore they showed; they were in no way scary. When I was a kid, The Kiss and A Nightmare on Elm Street gave me nightmares, but i saw both films recently on cable and I can't believe I got scared of all the cheesiness i was seeing onscreen. The Exorcist (re-issue) or even the recent Exorcism of Emily Rose? Forget it. I was probably the only person laughing inside the cinema when both films were shown in theaters. I can appreciate a well made horror film, but I can't really remember the last time I was legitimately scared. Each new horror film comes with a great deal of hype, but when I'm actually watching the next horror sensation, I'm always left disappointed.

So here comes the latest hyped up horror movie, the indie sensation Paranormal Activity. When i saw the trailers showing the reaction of audiences, I immediately thought ---bullshit. But the media continued to hype up the movie, plus a lot of friends have been raving about how scary it is, that i actually thought of seeing it. The hype got the better of me, and I was so psyched. I tried to keep my expectations to a minimum so that i won't feel disappointed. And you know what? I still felt disappointed.

I appreciate how they were able to make such an atmospheric film for only a few thousand dollars. And I'm rooting for the filmmakers because their film is making millions at the box office without all that hollywood gloss that often only serve to spoil recent horror movies. Yeah some scenes are creepy, and they made it look so genuine, but something is still missing. i just wasn't scared, not even for a minute. Also I know that the mockumentary style adds to the realism that they were aiming for, but I'm just not a fan of it. After watching the movie, I didn't feel terrified. I only felt dizzy.

This is a good film overall, and we should definitely support such films from the indie scene. But like me, those looking for a good scare would only feel disappointed (unless you are one of those who get easily frightened). Either the film isn't scary at all, or I've become extremely desensitized to horror films because I've watched so many of them. Maybe that doesn't make this review reliable, maybe it does. I guess you can't take my word for it, you just have to see the movie and judge for yourself.