Paranormal Activity 2 Review - Still Not a Big Deal

Ardent readers of the esteemed SI blog might recollect that we were not among those who went ooh, aah or wet our undies with Paranormal Activity 1.0.

And Paranormal Activity 2.0 didn’t send the juices gushing down our legs either.

The audience for the midnight show of Paranormal Activity 2 at a theater in the mid-Atlantic region was comprised mostly of teenagers including a lot of girls who were ejaculating (verbally, we mean) throughout the movie.

But yours ‘wise’ truly, who’s seen it all, didn’t think much of Rev 2.0 of the movie that is considered one of the most successful films ever (in terms of cost to returns).

Prequel+Sequel
Fans of the earlier version might be interested to know that Rev 2 of movie takes them before the start of the older version and in the last few moments edges past the first movie.

So, it’s both a prequel and a sequel. Interesting concept, eh.

Just in case you’re planning on watching the new movie, we’ll try our best not to give away much of the story.

Not that there’s much to give away, if you ask us because it’s more of the same just that the characters and details are different. But all in the family and Katie’s still around, don’t worry.

More of the Same
Overall, the narrative framework of the new movie is not significantly different from Rev 1.

You still have the jerky camera movement though not so much this time as in the previous version that was made on a shoestring budget of $11,000 (presumably, money was not an issue with Rev 2).

There’s, of course, plenty of in your face closeup shots here too.

And there’s lots of those grayish-blue midnight to 4AM shots, some still and some not-so-still (in more ways than one).

Oh yeah, again it’s the haunted house or ghosts or demons or wateva you want to call it underpinning the movie.

Only this time, all the spooky action happens in Katie’s sister’s new house. Yeah, spooky events like doors opening or shutting on their own, pots falling from their hangers, footsteps on the stairs, people being dragged down stairs and down the stairs, sudden loud noises, dog barking and the screams from the poor souls who happen to be in the house at the time.

This time there’s a toddler and a dog too. Can’t remember if the original featured a dog.

Well, in any case when did a bitch (we mean the dog, schmucks) ever amount to even a hill of beans (thank you, Rick).

Slicker but Not Much Better
Rev 2 seemed a bit more slick to us (bet it took more than $11,000 for this version). The acting of all the characters gave no cause for complaint.

Sure, there are a few interesting, startling, tense moments but they are too few and far between to make Paranormal Activity 2 a must watch film.

Overall, we felt that the script was not the stuff of edge-of-the-seat horror material. That’s what we thought with Version 1 and that again is what we think of the new movie.

We’ll confess though that we never saw the end coming until it did.

Verdict – $10.50 down the drain. 🙁