Ultra low budget horror shows the big boys how it’s done.
In a year where Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen lead the box office charts it’s refreshing to look back on 2009 and see Paranormal Activity’s $140million gross as proof that you don’t need a Michael Bay size budget to attract audiences. Made back in 2007, the film sat on a shelf for two years before being discovered by Steven Spielberg, whose clout ensured a theatrical release. $140million is impressive enough for any Hollywood horror flick but when you take into account the lack of a built-in franchise base, first time director, no name actors and a micro budget of $15,000 you have one of the biggest Hollywood success stories of 2009. Just to make it clear how well this movie did, $140million represents a 9000% return on the budget.
Regardless of how much money it made, it’s a damn good horror movie. Utilising a similar approach to 1999’s Blair Witch Project with its documentary authenticity the film follows a couple investigating supernatural activity in their suburban home. Katie has been plagued by the supernatural on and off since she was a little girl but and it has recently started up again. At first a sceptic, her husband Micah sets up all sorts of recording devices to allay her fears, he uses EVP scanners and a tripod camera to record them while they sleep.
It’s the use of no-name actors and documentary style shooting that help the film pile on the scares because it lends realism lacking in more traditional genre fare. The natural dialogue (the film was only loosely scripted and the actors did a lot of improvisation) means viewers can relate to these characters not as archetypes but as human beings who share the same everyday fears. As the film progresses and the paranormal activity to skyrockets and the tension slowly builds to breaking point.
The film is not without its flaws though. It would have been better had I not been buying into the hype beforehand and watching footage on YouTube. If you’ve seen the trailer then you’ve already glimpsed some of the scarier sequences, which diminishes the effect they have on you in the movie. Also, after a while the scenes recorded from the tripod start to get repetitive and their unsettling nature loses impact. The films amateur look may count against it for some, who are too used to flashier genre offerings. If you didn’t like The Blair Witch Project then you probably won’t like this
Paranormal Activity may suffer from overindulgence in its third act but any flaws are minor in comparison to the majority of junk trying to pass as horror at the moment. Only one other movie from 2009 comes close in terms of scares – Sam Raimi’s Drag Me To Hell. Considering Paranormal’s budget wouldn’t even cover their catering costs that’s one hell of an achievement. Director Oren Peli has marked himself as one to watch, and with another project, Area 51 already in post-production I’m eager to see if he can bottle lightning twice.
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