I finally saw it today. People thought this was scary?! Jesus. It’s the only movie I’ve ever seen that made me sick to my stomach due to the camera work, but it was only slightly creepy.
I take it, then, that you never saw Cloverfield? 'Cause that movie makes Paranormal Activity look like it was filmed with a steadycam.
Cloverfield and The Blair Witch project didn’t bother me as much, and I think it was because it was the sweeping motion of the camera in so many scenes in Paranomal Activity that sent my stomach roiling rather than the jostling up and down. OTOH, I didn’t pay as much attention to Cloverfield, so they might have had side to side motion too that I just didn’t notice.
I agree with Cuckoorex. I know people exactly like Micah in real life. Hell, I’ve dated guys like him. His reaction to the whole thing was frustrating, but for me 100% believable.
I don’t scare easily, and tend to often find the movies others find terrifying, like The Ring, The Changeling, or Event Horizon, just sort of creepy. That’s okay, though, because I like sort of creepy too.
But these movies actually were scary the first time I saw them:
Phantoms
In The Mouth of Madness
and to a lesser extent, Boogeyman
heh, that’s not helping the cause. Or at least it puts your dislike for Paranormal Activity in perspective.
In the Mouth of Madness was great – I’M LOSING ME! – but Phantoms and Boogeyman were terrible. (I only sat through them for Rose McGowan and Emily Deschanel respectively.)
Couple points…My wife didn’t like the premise, basically because you knew when something creepy was going to happen. Let’s believe this really was found footage. Every piece of bedroom footage, you knew something scary/creepy would happen, didn’t know what, but obviously the filmakers picked this piece of video for a reason, the only question was what, not if.
Other point…Yes it was creepy her standing and watching. Would have been creepier if she had jumped his bones and gotten all freaky. Earlier in the movie she didn’t want the camera on during sex and he mentioned that she was a freak. That would have been creepier.
The “you know something’s going to happen when the footage goes real-time” thing worked for us, because it wasn’t “is something going to happen?” it’s “what’s going to happen” - more of an awful dread sort of thing.
Then again, I’m terrible with horror movies and Did Not Do Well that night.
On the other other hand, the black guy behind us I think almost wet his pants. 