Title: Paranormal Activity 2
Director: Tod Williams
Producer: Oren Peli
Genre: Horror, Thriller, Mystery
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Series: Paranormal Activity
Release Date: October 22, 2010
Format: Standard
Runtime: 91 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Starring: Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat, Brian Boland, Molly Ephraim, Sprague Grayden
Synopsis (Product Description):
The sequel to the low-budget blockbuster Paranormal Activity takes place a few months before the events of the first film. Katie, the much put-upon leading lady in the original, has a sister living in an upscale Los Angeles suburb, Kristi. Kristi has a new baby son named Hunter, a likable lug of a husband named Daniel who owns several fast-food joints, a teenage stepdaughter from her hubby’s first marriage, Ali, and a large, friendly dog. As the family gets used to the new arrival, strange noises are heard late at night and when they come home from an outing, they discover the house has been trashed, even though none of their valuables have been stolen. Daniel responds by installing a security system and a network of surveillance cameras, though that doesn’t stop the noises or the Latino housekeeper’s insistence that spirits lurk in the home. When Katie and her boyfriend Micah stop by for a visit, they discuss the strange goings-on with Kristi; the women of the house believe supernatural forces are at work, while the men find that notion ridiculous. That doesn’t last long as the spirits get noisier and angrier, especially as Ali begins doing some research on the subject, and before long the safety of the household is being threatened on several fronts, possibly due to some dirty dealings in the family’s distant past.
The Review:
Paranormal Activity 2 is a sequel done right. Taking place alongside the events of the first film, Paranormal Activity 2Paranormal Activity protagonist, Katie. It turns out that months before things took a turn for the worse with Katie and Micah, Katie’s sister, and new mom, Kristi, was having supernatural trouble of her own. focuses on the family of
Paranormal Activity 2 doesn’t capture the initial awe of the first film, but it shouldn’t be dismissed as a souless cash-in. It seemlessly integrates into events of the first film, and the story occurs prior to, concurrently with and susequent to the events of the first film. This is the only instance I can think of where watching the sequel before the original film would work just as well, if not better than, the other way around.
Katie and Kristi’s family are victims of a family curse whereby a demon has laid claim to the soul of the family’s firstborn son, Hunter. Just like the original, Paranormal Activity 2 is notable for getting its scares without ever showing very much. It relies on sound and what we can’t see to evoke terror and it’s very effective. Even the way the first person camera is introduced and sustained is rather clever, and surprisingly believable, unlike, say, Cloverfield.
Paranormal Activity 2 is not just a worthy sequel, but a top notch horror movie in its own right. If you enjoyed the first film, then worry not. This sequel retains everything that made the original great and greatly expands on the first film.
FTC Advisory: We purchased our own tickets.
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