Paranormal Activity (2009)
73%RT Audience Score: 57%
Awards & Nominations: 3 wins & 12 nominations
Using its low-budget effects and mockumentary method to great result, Paranormal Activity turns a simple haunted house story into 90 minutes of relentless suspense
Paranormal Activity is the kind of movie that will make you want to sleep with the lights on for a week. It’s like a rollercoaster ride that you can’t get off of, and even when you know the scares are coming, they still manage to make you jump out of your seat. The movie is slow to start, but once it gets going, it’s a non-stop thrill ride that will leave you terrified and begging for more. The acting is naturalistic, and the small-scale project has an amazingly heightened effect. If you’re looking for a movie that will keep you on the edge of your seat, Paranormal Activity is definitely worth checking out. Just don’t say we didn’t warn you!
Production Company(ies)
Columbia Films, Anouchka Films, Orsay Films,
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Release Type
Streaming, Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Bavarian Drive, Rancho Peñasquitos, San Diego, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for language
Year of Release
2009
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 26m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Oct 16, 2009 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 29, 2009
Genre(s)
Horror
Keyword(s)
starring Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat, Amber Armstrong, Mark Fredrichs, Ashley Palmer, Crystal Cartwright, directed by Oren Peli, written by Oren Peli, horror, box office success, low budget, reviewed by Julie and Brandy, Shubhra Gupta, Deborah Ross, Candice Frederick, Ben Kenigsberg, Perri Nemiroff, Rob Aldam, Owen Nicholls, Angela L Harmon, Nikki Baughan, Noah Berlatsky, audience score of 57%, R rating, produced by Jason Blum, Oren Peli, supernatural presence, haunted house, found footage, suspense, terrifying events, suburban tract home, video cameras, psychic, exorcism nanny
Worldwide gross: $193,355,800
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $267,239,124
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 555
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 29,142,762
US/Canada gross: $107,918,810
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $149,155,744
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 519
US/Canada opening weekend: $77,873
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $107,629
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,908
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $15,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $20,732
Production budget ranking: 2,155
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $11,164
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $267,207,229
ROI to date (est.): 837,754%
ROI ranking: 1
Micah Sloat – Micah
Amber Armstrong – Amber
Mark Fredrichs – Psychic
Ashley Palmer – Girl on Internet
Crystal Cartwright – Exorcism Nanny
Director(s)
Oren Peli
Writer(s)
Oren Peli
Producer(s)
Jason Blum, Oren Peli
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
3 wins & 12 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (207) | Top Critics (52) | Fresh (172) | Rotten (35)
it was awesome in the way that it was extremely, horrendously and torturously stressful… worth it.
September 1, 2021
Julie and Brandy
Autostraddle
TOP CRITIC
[Paranormal Activity] is way more scary than Blair Witch because it takes the old conceit of things that go bump into the night, and brings it slyly into a well-to-do, middle class suburb.
April 17, 2019 | Rating: 4/5
Shubhra Gupta
The Indian Express
TOP CRITIC
This is a scarily well-made scary little film, although it certainly isn’t flawless… But the acting is supremely naturalistic and, for such a small-scale project, it does have an amazingly heightened effect.
August 30, 2018
Deborah Ross
The Spectator
TOP CRITIC
Though it’s slow in the beginning, the ending will leave you terrified and foaming at the mouth for a sequel.
September 11, 2017 | Rating: B
Candice Frederick
Reel Talk Online
TOP CRITIC
November 16, 2011 | Rating: 3/5
Ben Kenigsberg
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
It’ll take quite some time to recover before you can sleep soundly without wondering if you’re really alone in the room.
August 12, 2010 | Rating: 4.5/5
Perri Nemiroff
CinemaBlend
TOP CRITIC
Even when you know they’re coming, the scares still send a chill down your spine.
September 20, 2021
Rob Aldam
Backseat Mafia
Enter the cinema expecting a clever little movie, with some neat ideas and pretty decent performances and, if you let it, Paranormal Activity will give you a pretty uncomfortable nights sleep.
April 23, 2021
Owen Nicholls
NME
It’s one thing to create a movie that functions as good narrative storytelling, but it’s another to create that movie knowing exactly how an audience is going to react to stimuli.
December 12, 2019
Angela L. Harmon
The NitPic
Intense, disturbing and with an ending that will leave even the most resolute disbeliever sleeping with the light on, it’s as much an experience as it is a piece of entertainment.
October 29, 2019 | Rating: 5/5
Nikki Baughan
Roll Credits
The movie gets enormous mileage out of small, barely noticeable details-a door opening by itself, covers stirred by a breeze from nowhere, a chandelier swinging.
September 18, 2019
Noah Berlatsky
Splice Today
Its scares are undeniably effective, but the overall product lacks a real hook to pull in the audience.
June 6, 2019 | Rating: 2/4
Mattie Lucas
The Dispatch (Lexington, NC)…
Plot
After a young, middle class couple moves into a suburban ‘starter’ tract house, they become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be somehow demonic but is certainly most active in the middle of the night. Especially when they sleep. Or try to.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Fresh Kernels doesn’t say anything goofy or funny about Paranormal Activity, but it does mention the lead actors by name – Katie Featherston and Micah Sloat.
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