![]() ![]() Like a ghost train, it doesn’t slow down for long enough to let you notice that some of the scares are a little hollow, but it’s not enough to disguise that this one feels awfully similar to Chronicle, a far better found footage movie. Christopher B Landon (directing his first film for the series, after writing the previous sequels) has a few interesting new scares up his sleeve too, and the film seldom resorts to cheap jumps at any point. For the first time in the series, the film never refers to a static camera or CCTV of overnight occurrences, instead relying solely on the handheld exploits of our two protagonists.Īside from provoking more questions than ever about why the characters would still be filming, this successfully adds to the more energetic pace of the sequel. On the plus side, there’s more of the innovation that made Paranormal Activity 3 such a riot. ![]() Then again, the bar is so low by this point in the series, it’s not enough to merely be better than part four. The “One” in The Marked Ones is technically an odd number, and the spin-off is definitely a step up from Paranormal Activity 4. The third film improved on Paranormal Activity 2 by bringing in a 1980s horror movie vibe, and conjuring up some of the series’ most inventive and surprising scares. By contrast, the first film remains a master class in deriving tension from absolutely nothing for an extended period, which was somewhat undercut by the huge marketing push. With the earlier sequels having adhered so closely to the formula of a family being spooked out by recordings of their house for about an hour before the third act goes bananas, this film breaks out of that mould, and the paranormal stuff is pretty active throughout.ĭoes that necessarily make for a good film? Well, the rule I’ve personally noticed is kind of inverse to the famous rule about Star Trek movies, in that the even-numbered films tend to be weaker. While it's possible the new movie could be a reboot, the more likely outcome is the next Paranormal Activity will be catching up with Toby and his antics following the events of The Ghost Dimension.Fans who were left cold by the dreary, perfunctory fourth instalment will be pleased to hear that this film has more going on than any of its predecessors. The sixth film was supposed to mark the end of the series, but a seventh entry is now in development. The film ends with Toby actually succeeding in this goal, though only his feet are shown. Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension reveals Toby's ultimate goal is to take physical form, and the film gives viewers glimpses of the entity throughout. The movie also ends by traveling back in time to the end of Paranormal Activity, where Katie kills her husband. Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones shines a light on what happens to the first-born males, with the witch coven helping a demon create an army of possessed men. This backfires spectacularly when Toby takes possession of Katie, killing Micah and in the finale of part two, killing Kristi and her husband before taking their son and disappearing. Kristi's husband feels their only way out of trouble is to transfer the demon to a blood relative - in this case, Katie. Paranormal Activity 2 - which is set at the same time as the original - is set in Kristi's home, with Toby coming to collect her newborn son Hunter. Paranormal Activity's Toby has to wait a long time for a male to be born into the family, though he first makes himself known to Katie and Kristi when they are children in 1988. The backstory behind this entity is that Katie's grandmother Lois made a deal with a coven of witches for wealth and power in exchange for a demon taking the soul of her family's first-born son. While Paranormal Activity's Toby isn't a horror icon like Halloween's Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees, he made for a memorable villain. The series also received a Japanese spinoff with 2010's Paranormal Activity 2: Tokyo Night, though the events of that film have never been mentioned in the rest of the series. Related: Paranormal Activity: Marked Ones' Ending & Connections Explained Subsequent sequels expanded the mythology, exploring Katie's backstory, with prequel Paranormal Activity 3 revealing how the demon first made itself known with Katie's young sister Kristi dubbing it "Toby." Like with most horror franchises the sequels were a mixed bag, with the third movie and spinoff Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones considered the best, while the last entry Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension was regarded as a disappointment. The movie became a massive success and soon kicked off a long-running franchise that dethroned the Saw series at the box-office. ![]() Paranormal Activity was re-edited for its theatrical release and a new ending was shot, with Steven Spielberg himself suggesting the final jump scare where a possessed Katie lunges at the camera. ![]()
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