Film Review: ‘Paranormal Activity 3’ Earns Every Fright in Precise Chiller

Submitted by PatrickMcD on October 21, 2011 - 8:17pm

CHICAGO – Horror films that delicately balance the psychological nature of fear with the actual chills are as rare as Lady Gaga without attention. “Paranormal Activity 3” is one of those scary “delights,” essentially walking the tightrope between screaming “boo” in a crowded theater and tensely sending electricity down the spine.

Rating: 4.0/5.0

In the capable creator hands of the perplexing film “Catfish” from last year, directors Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, “PA3” becomes a voyeuristic dream, shot through the prism of 1980s camcorders. This prequel to the first Paranormal Activity films takes the sister characters of Katie and Kristi Rey and places them back as children in the late 1980s, and uses the distinct technique of the two filmmakers – constant point-of-view use of camcorder perspective – as the basis for all the great scary moments.

The film begins in 2005, when sister Kristi (Sprague Grayden) drops off some boxes at the home of her sister Katie (Katie Featherston). There are some mysterious videotapes in one of the boxes, which becomes the basis for the flashbacks. One more year goes by, and when Katie’s house is trashed, the videotapes come up missing. The film suddenly shifts to the footage that is on those old school cassettes.

The tapes reveal that Dennis (Christopher Nicholas Smith) is a videographer, and lives with Julie (Lauren Bittner), the mother of Young Katie (Chloe Csengery) and Kristi (Jessica Tyler Brown). When some bumps in the night has Dennis setting up camcorders all around the house, the footage reveals a presence, and it might be associated with an imaginary friend that only reveals itself to Kristi. Dennis and his associate Randy (Dustin Ingram) become obsessed with discovering the source of the “activity,” and that fixation leads down a frightening path.

“Paranormal Activity 3” opens everywhere October 21st. Featuring featuring Lauren Bittner, Chloe Csengery, Christopher Nicholas Smith, Dustin Ingram, Katie Featherstone and Sprague Grayden. Screenplay by Christopher B. Landon and Oren Pell. Directed by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman. Rated “R”