There's A Lot Of Paranormal Activity Going On Here

A haunted house makes no secret of the fact it is not pleased with its new tenants in this independent tale of supernatural horror. Katie (Katie Featherson) and Micah (Micah Sloat) are a twentysomething couple who've just moved into a new home in San Diego, California. Katie has an interest in the paranormal and believes that malevolent spirits have been following her since childhood, though Micah is not so easily convinced. However, after several nights of loud noises and strange happenings, Micah starts to agree with Katie that some sort of ghost may have followed them to the new home in Paranormal Activity.

The Blair Witch comparison has become remarkably over-used in the years since the film's release, becoming increasingly synonymous with genre stories presented as real life events and captured using low-tech, hand-held equipment. Most recently, it's been used to describe films such as Cloverfield or Quarantine, which told of an attack on New York by a giant monster and a building populated by the carnivorous undead, respectively. But the comparison is never truly appropriate. It focuses too much on execution and not enough on the spirit in which Blair Witch was created – small, low-budget, no polish or visual effects, a cast of everyday people, and a not a whiff of film studio influence within a hundred miles. And for as thrilling as a first-person account of a rampaging Godzilla or a horde of hungry zombies might seem, they still, at the end of the day, feel very much like movies. Paranormal Activity, however, actually deserves the comparison. Made seemingly for the cost of the camera on which it was filmed – plus, perhaps, some fishing line and baby powder – the film presents an intensely escalating ghost story from a single point-of-view. In truth, it's shoe-string scary, delivering a terrifying, unsettling 90 minutes without a single bit of CG or foam latex in sight, and all confined to a single house. The story itself is incredibly simple: Katie and Micah, yet to be married, own a home together. Katie has, throughout her entire life, experienced strange, innocuous occurrences which some would refer to as a haunting were it not for the fact that the events have apparently followed her from house to house. Whatever activity she's experiencing is potentially attached to her, not a specific place. Micah, more amused than concerned, decides to film the house while they sleep to see if they can capture anything on video, an act which appears to antagonize the entity into a new level of performance. The activity happens mostly at night, while the couple is asleep, and what begins as simply a door quietly moving in the shadows quickly becomes something much, much worse. The couple's interactions during the day – all filmed my Micah – document their increasing discomfort, but when the scene fades and the next image is revealed to be the bedroom, darkened at 2AM, one can hear the audience shift in their seats, anticipating some ghostly assault, more and more uncomfortable as the activity becomes increasingly aggressive.

To spoil what actually happens in those moments would no doubt diminish the incredible level of suspense and terror that the film so brilliantly creates. But rest assured, Paranormal Activity works because of its naturalistic simplicity. It feels real. It feels plausible. And even at its most intense – which, in any other movie, would be yet another bit of over-produced, supernatural spectacle – the film uses relatively simple methods to illicit a huge reaction from its audience. This is the kind of film that makes you pull the covers closer, ensuring that your body isn't exposed to whatever might drift beside you during the night; the kind of film that leaves you wondering what you might feel if you woke up in the moonlight to see a shadow standing in the doorway. Paranormal Activity is a small yet hugely effective horror film that any fan of the genre must absolutely see. It's opening in a very limited release, though Paramount has created a program where fans can jump on the company's website and "demand" that the film play in their town. Presumably, the company will consider opening the film wider as more demand is generated, but if you can get to a theatre, then go. If you can't, then demand the film and hope that it plays in your area soon. This is small, smart, inventive filmmaking that illustrates the best of what the horror genre can offer. This one is a definite must-see for any true horror fan. This gets a 5 on my "Go See" scale.