"'Paranormal Activity' vs. 'The Blair Witch Project.'"

By Bob Zerull

I was late in seeing “Paranormal Activity.” After reading an article from “Entertainment Weekly” about the three alternate endings, I thought it was about time I commented. “Paranormal Activity” has been fairly compared to “The Blair Witch Project.” The latter of the two films came out ten years ago and took Hollywood by storm. No other film has been able to match that hype and success, until “Paranormal Activity.”



So which one is better?

I can see why you’d lean in either direction. Personally I’m going to lean towards “The Blair Witch Project.” That movie was so real and so natural. There wasn’t really a “Blair Witch,” but those kids were really out there in the woods without really knowing what was going on. They weren’t acting; rather they were just being. In “Paranormal Activity” there wasn’t too much acting either, but there was enough that I got taken out of the movie for a little bit. So much so that I was disconnected from the story when it ended and I’m pretty sure the ending would have scared the crap out of me if I had never lost that connection.

What both movies did very well was let your imaginations run wild. During both movies I found myself praying for daylight whenever there was a nighttime shot. I honestly believe those that say they weren’t scared by either movie, disconnected from the story at some point, so they weren’t letting their imaginations run wild.

I loved the marketing campaigns for both. “The Blair Witch” people actually convinced a lot of people that these were real tapes. “Paranormal Activity” shot the audience members and used their reaction to watching the movie as its trailer. It was pure genius in both cases.



I watched “Paranormal Activity” last night at 10:00 o’clock at night. At around midnight when it was over I was cleaning up our kitchen after my wife went to sleep. At this point I was kind of disappointed in “Paranormal Activity” and I was prepared to tell everyone. As I’m tidying up the kitchen, all of the sudden I start hearing and seeing stuff. I had to go to bed watching “Robot Chicken” to keep me from being up all night. “Paranormal Activity” stuck with me.

Both movies satisfied my need to be scared shitless. That ending shot in “The Blair Witch Project” will forever be burned in my memory. A true test in a horror film is if that movie can continue to scare you after you finish watching it. I can only really think of a handful of films that really have that affect on me. These movies definitely fit the bill.

I am very pleased with the success of “Paranormal Activity.” This season has been dominated by the “Saw” films for the past five years. Don’t get me wrong, “Saw” through “Saw 3” were surprisingly decent pictures, but four and five were terrible. It was nice to see “Paranormal Activity” come out and kick “Saw 6’s” ass at the box office. Check out “Paranormal Activity.” I highly recommend seeing it with an audience. The audience experience adds so much to the movie.



BYLINE:

Bob Zerull is a frequent movie and concert goer who talks about his ventures to arenas and theaters more than any person should be allowed to do. Now, he puts them down on paper. Visit: www.cadaverchristmas.com. Email Bob at bob@zoiksonline.com.