Paranormal Activity

Guess I'm just a fan of the slow burn. I didn't find the characters that offensively portrayed, and I really like how the screenplay got around the simple solution of most haunted house movies (Get the hell out of the house!) by having it a reoccurring event in her life.

I think it will be one of those films that will be endlessly debated by genre fans for years. All I can say is, it really got to me. Just call me crazy.

Oh, I didn't hype it that bad! Geez. I saw it in an early screening. I liked it a lot. It also had a different (i.e., better) ending at that time. I stand by that I liked it, and I also submit that I saw it without the baggage of two years of chatter behind it.

The great majority of those who saw the early screenings went away describing it in a very favorable fashion. The fact that all others were denied the chance to see it, for at least two years until they finally released it, bubbled this "very favorable fashion" into a gushing froth. Nothing can live up to what it had, through lore, turned into.

It's a fact of life that, if you start to REALLY look forward to something, it rarely, if ever, manages to live up to the grand expectations. Two years of being hidden really made a lot of horror fans look forward to this film, and it really let the hyperbole bake. After that much chatter and talk, it's hard for some people not to go into it without a chip on their shoulder.

I think it's a great movie. I don't think it's perfect. The new ending is definitely weaker (why the cheap CGI morph, oh why) than the one I saw. But I think it had some great contextual scares and those are the sort of scares I love the most. I love a good creepy movie. I thought it was very refreshing to have a film that was sincerely trying to be scary. Most films these days just try to gross out with gratuitous gore; but they fail to even try to build up good contextual creepiness. Frankly, I think it's easier to go the route of disgusting people with gore. Being genuinely creepy requires a lot more thought.

Was HOUSE the movie that starred the blond guy from Greatest American Hero? Cause I think I liked that movie if so.

ahhh. also, not to be confused with the Japanese movie from the 70s 'House' (AKA 'Hausu') which is a fucking weird haunted house story involving a group of teenaged japanese girls, a singing cat, a haunted piano, and a creepy old grandmother character. VERY weird.

I'm with Tristan and 1kw on this. Saw it last night in extremely creepy circumstances: stranded in a very bad snowstorm, mostly empty island, lights out, fire going, decent buzz. Thought it had some fresh DIY ideas and for those who laughed at the ending, you should have seen the possible ones going through my mind when she left the room. I was creeped to the bejesus before she even started screaming.

As for lasting effects? Check out how my brain works: went to bed, cable goes out. Not just out, but it "turns off". And then my remote refused to work. So I'm in total silence, as the storm has stopped. This allows my always settling seashore condo to creak, pop and thud all night. I had to laugh at the head-to-toe chills I was getting.

Pissed I don't have an iPhone to see the "Search for Katie" app. Apparently it picks up at the final frame. Worried about the sequel in the works, though.

Yep. Or a remake. That's a scarier idea.

One reason I don't find the movie scary. I was raised charismatic Christian, so when there's demons roaming around, we just start pleading the blood of Jesus LOL. Movies like that just make me wanna shake my head and say "Them people need Jesus." (yes, southern inflections intended).

I was discussing the "Christian element" of demon films in another forum and many of us agreed that faith barely plays into our reaction to these kinds of films. It's more or less a malevolent entity, and the concept of "possession" is acceptable enough to suspend our disbelief. I'm not a "God-botherer" at all, but that we might be surrounded by "evil forces" that can do us harm is totally believable enough for me to allow myself to get sucked into demon stuff. In fact, I thought the "cross scene" was kind of unnecessary, but understood why it was there in a narrative sense.

I finally saw this movie oh my god hah it has some like creepy moments, but in now way was I scared. Well I haven't gone to bed yet, so I don't know lol I saw it with the police ending where they shot up katie spoiler alert.

Like ash said they talked way too damn much and what annoyed me the most was like how they spoke like so matter a fact about it. "Oh yeah some spooky demon haunting me since I was 8 like for sure so I'm going to call this psychic!"

On a 1 to 10 scale I give it a 6

The original ending isn't so bad, not as bad as I thought it would be. But I agree the sliting throat ending is better.

Plus those characters were annoying as fuck. Espeically the boyfriend I wanted to beat the shit out of him when he brought the Ouija board over.

The boyfriend may have been insensitive, but I found him hilarious lol.

I actually did enjoy the movie, I found it very scary at times and loved the way they approached the haunted person idea. And like pretty much everyone here, out of all of the endings, the one where she slits her throat is the best.

BUT for some reason it doesn't make sense to me why the demon would keep being a douchebag all her life just to kill her boyfriend and then her.

Why did she need to die? Was it just some sick game?
Questions, QUESTIONS!

Not sure why the demon attached itself to her in particular (starting with her house fire), but I think it ratcheted up its demon activity as things got more negative. It fed off that energy, they explained, and as the couple became more estranged and angry, the demon got more and more powerful. I think.

I liked the fact that the demon's motivations were left unclear. Some things just don't need to be explained.

And yea, the boyfriend is an ass. But I also have met a lot of men who would behave that way, so I didn't find it a distraction.

Ok true, but its not like that girl was expecting that thing to follow her around all her life. And besides how can you bring that up in a conversation and do you think your boyfriend would take you seriously? Granted yes she should of told him I have this demon haunting me since I was 8, but his whole behavior of the whole thing was ridiculous not wanting to call the demonoloigist at first because he thought he was a wack. He wanted to do the manly thing and handle things himself and look what that got him dead.

okay okay... LOL Charismatic Christian theology coming in here.

We believe that demons and evil spirits CAN attach themselves to a person. These can be anything from drug addictions, some (note I said some) mental illnesses, violent tendencies, etc, on down to actual physical manifestations. These spirits attach themselves to people because of things they've gotten into, ouija boards, satanism, mediums, psychics, deathmetal music (lol), negative peple in your life, and what have you. Sometimes they attach to a person when something traumatic happens and they let down their spiritual guard. These spirits exist solely to torture this person to death. The only way to get rid of it is to confess your sins to Christ (NOT some dude in a fancy bathrobe in a tiny little room), repent of your sins, and do your dangest to live for God. It ain't magic and sometimes these things hang out even after a person turns to Christianity. sometimes spirits are the effect of generational curses, and those curses have to be broken, or th results of having spiritually unclean items in your home or life. It takes 'maintenance'-- lots of deliverance prayers, intercessory prayers, cleaning out of closets and attics and basements (you think I"m kidding???) to cleanse a person's life of these influences. Christians aren't immune to it, and in fact suffer from spiritual attacks too. There's a Bible verse that says something along the lines of once a house (meaning a person) is cleaned out, that demon will try to come back and bring seven of his friends with him.

The bible also says the devil and his demons exist to 'steal, kill, and destroy.'

Side note-- i love this forum. I can talk about the stuff I believe in, and not get flamed outta town! LOL

Ok I'm going to mention this here I think my boyfriend's house is haunted it like shakes sometimes and I hear thuds at night. But there could be a explanation for that but it scares the shit out of me. I never really dealt with paranormal experiences before but his house it makes noises for real. Plus you hear footsteeps like someone is upstairs when no one is up there. He doesn't believe in that stuff, but I'm like ah I don't know maybe. I don't know why I'm mentioning this, but its been bothering me since I have been here for the past week.

Oh thank God Ash (no pun intended, but I'll take 'em where I can get 'em!) I was like "WAH?" and knew something was askew.

It was obviously my inability to decipher a post directly in front of my eyes.

I dig the fact you can be an Xtian as well as be into what you are into. You are the breed that can and will dispel misnomers that a person of faith has to be pent up and misguided.

I am Episcopal myself, but non-practicing. Am I glad I have been baptized. Darn skippy.

Absolutely. On all counts.

I thought the sign said "no grown ups!"

By the way, I still think about that long smile Katie gives to the camera in the penultimate scene. That's some staying power.

And speaking of pathetic suckers (other thread), I'm now in pursuit of an iPhone. Not really because I need to be able to access email and junk outside of my office (which I do), but because I really want that PA app "The Search for Katie".

*hangs head, sells things*

maturity is my middle name.

I'm not so good at being all mature and intellectual all the time.

A guy sets up a camera to "catch" his girlfriend's "demons" on tape in their bedroom...a demon that's been following her around since her family's house burned down (I can't remember the age...was it 11? or was her sister 11?).

Before the boyfriend becomes hellbent on getting her demon on camera (that is, he becomes hellbent after he begs her to strip for the camera and have sex in front of the camera...which she turns both down), the film's wrought with phallic symbols - we open to him showing off his camera in a mirror...then he films his electric guitar for no reason whatsoever...other than to worship his "ax."

So for me, I could not help but think about sex and technology (he's obsessed with his computer while her hobby is either knitting or sewing - i don't remember which) throughout the entire film.

But yeah, I didn't find it scary either. But I def. thought it was well-done for what it was.

I liked this movie quite a lot. It's far from perfect but when it does work it's awesome.

Although the Spielberg ending is utter crap. It's a cheap, lame boo scare that completely undermines any atmosphere the film has built.

I don't know if I said this earlier in the thread or not, but - nothing, and I mean nothing at all, can live up to that much hype. Seeing this movie without knowing anything about it was *great*. I was lucky and saw a very early screening, not knowing too much about it.

Everyone else had to wait two years and be bombarded with a lot of verbal hype in the interim. While it's a good and scary little movie, it just can't live up to that sort of buzz. Nothing can.

Which suffered the same fate - too much hype killed it. It's still a good movie; it's just not as good as the hype.

Well, OBVIOUSLY.

Welcome back Scotto!