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Directed by Oren Peli.  Starring Katie Featherston and Micah Sloat.  Horror.  USA, 99 minutes. 

DVD release date 15th March 2010 - £12.99. BUY NOW

A look into a young couple’s life as they try to figure out exactly what is going bump in the night.  We follow them as they attempt to find the source of the noises that continually wake them and the reason why their bedroom door opens and closes on its own. 

This is shot in a faux documentary style where either one of the main stars are filming the action or the camera is left in a static position, this meant star Micah Sloat got to do some double duty during the production both in front of the camera and filming the majority of what we see.  Katie has been plagued by periodic visits from a presence that have haunted her since childhood.  Micah is her sceptical boyfriend who takes the chance to play ghostbusters as soon as he gets the opportunity.  As the story begins we see the couple take the new step of attempting document what is disturbing them nightly.  Micah records both the audio and visual to see if he can get hard evidence of whatever Paranormal Activity is plaguing them.  As the film progresses the camera which Micah introduced to the house not only begins to cause tension between our couple but also seems to result in heightened activity from the presence.  The camera doesn’t seem to be the only thing antagonising the entity as after one particularly disturbing night Katie finds that one picture of the couple has scratch marks across Micah’s face and the glass has been smashed.  This sets the tone for the climax of the film as the entity sets out to rid the house of the things which upset it most. 

The little movie that could.  This is the micro budgeted sensation which us genre fans have waited two years for.  The film has crossed the Atlantic on a wave of publicity and hype not seen for a small film since Blair Witch Project all those years ago.  Some dub this the ‘scariest movie ever’ and it certainly does deliver a couple of very effective scares after a slow build up which has the audience watching shadows and listening out for the smallest noise.  The pay off for Paranormal Activity is one of the most interesting parts of the story, while filming the director shot a number of different endings .  The theatrical ending is the first time that both main protagonists have to face the thing that has haunted them throughout the movie.  

All in all a more than solid directorial debut from Oren Peli.  I especially enjoyed the subtle build up of fear in both the couple and the audience as the film reached its conclusion.  A very atmospheric, simple story about things we don’t quite understand and the dangers of dabbling in the paranormal.  I for one am intrigued to see where Peli will go for the proposed sequel. 

Colin Bennett.

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