There’s no doubt you’ve heard all about this movie by now. If you haven’t seen it, everyone you know has seen it and they’re probably divided into two extreme camps on whether it’s good or not. I’ve heard many people say how gloriously terrifying this movie is and I’ve heard others say how ridiculously stupid it is. What do I think? Well, I’m uncomfortably straddling the fence between the two and I could fall either way depending on how much trouble I have falling asleep tonight. On the one hand, I have a real strong dislike for most movies shot in the first-person, home video style (Cloverfield, Quarantine, Home Movie, etc.) and having to sit through 90 minutes of that kind of shaky nonsense does not make me happy. On the other hand, I really dig any kind of horror movie that delivers simple, legitimate, honest, bare bones chills, and Paranormal Activity does exactly that.

Young couple Katie and Micah (that’s pronounced Me-ka, not My-ka….so annoying) want to get to the bottom of the strange happenings that have plagued Katie her whole life, so Micah invests in some sophisticated recording equipment that will hopefully catch the evil spirits doing their haunting thing while the couple sleeps. The camera and microphones do what they’re supposed to and the couple’s suspicions are confirmed; footsteps, lights going on and off, doors moving, Katie’s sleepwalking — all of it is caught on video. Not sure how to handle it, the couple calls in a psychic to help, but he’s pretty much useless, and the haunting intensifies, completely fraying the ends of Katie and Micah’s sanity.

Paranormal Activity, with its guerrilla marketing and low budget approach, was supposed to confuse and intrigue the public as to its authenticity much like The Blair Witch Project did, but who’s that gullible these days? However, the movie kept true to that premise by offering extremely believable, psychological horror (which is my favourite kind of horror), a horror that wasn’t ruined by an kind of explanation or a visible ghost. We never find out why Katie is being targeted nor do we find out exactly what — or who — is targeting her. And it’s better that way! All we know is that shit is happening and it’s totally creepy.

Ok, so we have to put up with the usual “Do you have to have the camera on?” and “Turn off the fucking camera!” dialogue rampant in movies like this, and the constant bickering and crying associated with it, and Micah is a bit of a dick, and we really could’ve done without the cliched Ouija Board scene, but if you’ve ever heard noises in your house at night, this movie will probably freak you out just a little bit. Or more. I watched Paranormal Activity with wide-eyed, peak-eared intensity because it demanded it, and you’ll no doubt do the same.

Oh, one more thing. That divide I mentioned earlier between people who like this movie and people who don’t seems to have something to do with the ending. Or so I’ve heard. I guess some people saw one ending and some saw the other, but rest easy because the DVD release has both endings, so you can decide which one works for you. I actually liked both of them.

Check out the trailer for Paranormal Activity!