Shot in seven days on a budget of about $15,000, Paranormal Activity is a downright phenomenon that’s gradually scaring the shit out of the entire U.S., one midnight screening at a time. Its minimalist approach and use of “found footage” to create a narrative is rightly drawing comparisons to The Blair Witch Project, but Paranormal is another kind of monster. I saw Blair in the theater when I was 17 years old and it barely gave me a chill. Now I’m 27 and Paranormal had me begging my friends to hang out until my roommate came home, because I couldn’t sleep in the apartment alone. So what makes this movie so damn effective? It relies on the most powerful tool in horror: the audience’s imagination. CGI and special effects are kept to an art school minimum, and first time writer and director Orni Peli uses atmosphere and sound design to turn the cranks in our brains as we fill in the horrifying blanks.

Paranormal Activity is made up of fake footage shot in the home of Micah and Katie, a young couple who recently moved into a new suburban home. Katie has been hearing bizarre noises at night and electronics enthusiast Micah decides to buy a camcorder and leave it running all night in their bedroom. Micah is, frankly, a douchebag and Katie spends most of their time together pleading with him to get the camera out of her face. This got old after about five minutes and created the only issue I had with the movie: the pacing blew. There would be these amazing bedroom scenes with tension that was almost unbearable, then 10-15 yawning minutes of Micah being a prick. But that’s my only complaint. I actually had no clue going in that the “activity” was going to involve demonology and the occult, but it added another dimension to the film that skyrocketed above “haunted house” drivel. And as the “activities” increase, we’re right there with Katie as she loses all hope.

The time stamp in the bottom-right corner during the bedroom footage added immeasurably to the tension in these scenes. Every single time the movie cut to bedroom footage, every single audience member tensed up and slouched in their seats a bit. Unless vocal reactions completely ruin the theater-going experience for you, seeing this movie in a packed theater is required. It’s a communal experience. My favorite audience reaction came from this cholo in front of me who, after the movie ended, was too busy texting to realize his friends had started shuffling out. He shot out of his seat and ran after them screaming, “Yo! Don’t leave me, yo! Play me like that?” And I can’t remember the last time an audience was so verbal after a movie. People were arguing, laughing nervously, and visibly shaken. I wanted to ask them all out to Denny’s so we could talk.

- Oh Mars