If genuine chilling horror generated by plot rather than special effects appeals to you, you should watch Paranormal Activity online. Screenings often included viewers getting up to leave because it was so frightening. Though it has not been widely released, Paranormal Activity has generated considerable buzz due to its effectiveness in scaring people.
There’s nothing complex about the plot: a young couple is haunted by a demon. Sound boring? It definitely isn’t. The movie only cost $15,000 and took a week to shoot, plus the extraordinary directing and editing effort of director, writer, and editor Oren Peli.
It first screened at the Screamfest Film Festival in 2007. Paranormal Activity was also shown at the 2008 Slamdance film festival. Your point of view is that of the video camera the couple sets up to capture paranormal phenomena.
Oren Peli’s own experience with strange household phenomena were the basis for the film. Peli’s own fear of the supernatural informed his creation of this movie. The movie was filmed in Peli’s house a year after he began renovations to get the look of the house just right for what he had in mind. He spent considerable time studying paranormal activity too. If you watch Paranormal Activity online, you might think it is a trick because it just isn’t scary.
Don’t turn it off.
This was Peli’s plan: creating an atmosphere from which the fear builds and not relying on CGI or other special effects. It is amazing what $15,000 and a hand held camera can create. There was no actual script, just outlines of the various scenes. The actors created their own dialog based on scene descriptions.
There was talk that Dreamworks would remake Paranormal Activity and include the original on the DVD. The contract with Peli, however, included a one-time screening of the original to see audience reaction. The audience’s reaction let Dreamworks know there was no reason at all to do a remake.
Watch Paranormal Activity online then watch yourself jump the next time a door creaks.
