Paranormal Activity 2

Starring: Brian Boland, Molly Ephraim, Sprague Grayden, Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat, Seth Ginsberg
Directed by: Tod Williams
Rating: R
Genre: Horror, Thriller
2010

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A family sets up security cameras around their home after a break-in. The cameras capture something far more sinister.

Review:

Tim: I was a huge fan of the original Paranormal Activity. For a film that was made with such a small budget, it created an incredibly creepy atmosphere and a very scary, unforgettable story. They proved that big budgets aren't always necessary to create a compelling, interesting story. As much as I enjoyed that film, I was hesitant about the sequel. Too often, horror movies hit something effectively with the first film, and then suffer a big drop in quality in the subsequent sequels. I'm not even convinced Paranormal Activity required a sequel. And yet, here we are, regardless.

As you might expect, this sequel enjoyed a bigger budget, a larger cast, and delivered lowered quality. Why it's so hard to make a good horror sequel, I may never know. While this film marks a decided drop in quality, it still does some things right. I wouldn't consider this a bad film- just a decent movie that should have been better.

I was surprised at how well this film did at creating a similarly creepy, frightening atmosphere. There's something so inherently scary about thinking about your home being invaded by an evil demon spirit. Unseen forces at work, trying to scare you, harm you, and accomplish its nefarious goals is genuinely scary. This film wisely follows that same formula that made the first one such a success. While that aspect was good, there' some negatives associated with it as well. This film follows that formula a bit too much- it plays out almost exactly as you might expect. The family installs cameras, a few weird things happpen, they grow in intensity, until they reach the fever pitch of a conclusion. It's all very expected.

Part of the reason I liked the original film so well was because Katie Featherton and Micah Sloat did a very good job of portraying a realistic couple caught in over their heads. The acting wasn't always strong, but their lack of talent gave the film a realistic quality. We were able to identify with them as people and as a couple, and it made the movie work. The cast this time is less effective. I like Sprague Grayden, but she's a "real" actress, and it came across that way on screen. Her husband, Brian Boland was pretty boring and added very little to the film. Her stepdaughter, played by Molly Ephraim was pretty good, but even still, as a trio, these actors and characters didn't really work for me. I thought it was clever how the script connected to Featherton and Sloat, and I really enjoyed seeing them again.

So much of how you rate this film depends on how willing you are to buy the story. This film is interesting because it is both a prequel and a sequel to the original. That's an interesting, unique take. The film sheds much more light on the events of the original, while also providing some context for the events that followed the original's end. In one way, it's pretty fascinating to learn more about the events and the demon from the original Paranormal Activity. On the other hand, sometimes when you shine a light on something, it loses its sense of mystery and mystique. I felt like this film clarified events from the original, but also made them seem less cool. It helped- and hurt- the overall franchise.

There were a number of scenes that were legitimately creepy. The pool cleaner scene was surprisingly so. I won't describe the others, but they all contain the typical haunting events you would expect to see. The movie did a good job of keeping the audience on its toes. I often wondered with a sense of dread, "They are obviously showing us this for a reason- what is going to happen?" That sense of dread never left me, even when the scenes in question proved to be supernatural-free. I liked that aspect of the movie.

However, despite a few legitimate strengths, Paranormal Activity 2 proved that bigger isn't always better. While this film didn't ruin the franchise or necessarily tarnish the original's legacy, it did mark a drop in quality. This film isn't as good as the first movie. While that might be expected, it doesn't decrease the disapppointment.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Paranormal Activity, The Blair Witch Project, Poltergeist, The Exorcist