Witness Paranormal Activity 3 Everywhere, Beginning January 24
It’s so easy to scare someone. Hide in a dark corner and when they pass, jump out and scream like a banshee…or simply shout “boo!” Giving someone the creeps takes more energy, more planning, and more concentration.
What distinguished The Blair Witch Project (1999) and Paranormal Activity (2007) from other horror films was that they made the audience feel uncomfortable and they maintained that discomfort, increasing the level throughout the films. The characters, relatively average people, are afraid but they don’t know why. The contagion of fear infects the audience, holding them captive for the length of the film, and maybe even for a while afterwards. Some audience members were, of course, frightened by these films, just as others thought there was nothing scary or creepy about them at all.
On January 24, 2012, Paranormal Activity 3 (2011) debuts on a Blu-ray/DVD combo that includes a digital copy and a key to watch on computers, tablets, and smartphones via UltraViolet. Also included in the combo are both the unrated and theatrical versions. The question is, “Is Paranormal Activity 3 worth watching?” Being third in a series, can it deliver chills as effectively as the first? Can it infect the audience with its characters’ fear as efficiently as the original? There is a reason Paranormal Activity 3 earned over $200-million worldwide--it does succeed where its predecessors did.
Because we are watching a “home video,” we feel less like an audience and more like people who share a familiarity with the characters. Paranormal Activity 3 begins on a light note as a couple is decorating a nursery for their soon-to-be-born baby boy. The husband is making the video we are watching to introduce the child to his family and room. The doorbell rings and the wife’s sister is there to see the nursery.
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