filmland / By Charlie Myers

Midnight Movie

No matter. Try as he might, Michael can’t convince girlfriend Kelly (Amber Heard, who looks great in a bikini), his mom or her friends that anything is amiss. Too bad they didn’t watch the opening sequence, but in the end we all pay equally. Rated PG-13. 101m. At the Movies and Fortuna.

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY: *Paranormal Activity* has many of the elements that made The Blair Witch Project such a surprise hit. Originally screened in 2007 at the Screamfest Film Festival, the film got a second life this year through a clever advertising campaign that included midnight showings in select towns and cities. Using unknown actors and their actual names makes the events seem to be happening to “real” people as opposed to, say, Naomi Watts, and the crude camera work adds to the home movie documentary style the film affects.

The setup is simple. Katie (Katie Featherston) has been haunted by some presence since she was young. Her boyfriend, Micah (Micah Sloat), a day trader, buys a video camera hoping to capture the ghost or demon on film. The action takes place entirely in their house over a number of days and nights in September and October 2006. Other than the couple, the only other person we see is a very unhelpful Dr. Mark Fredrichs, a psychic.

The best thing about the film is the effective gradual build up of paranormal events leading to the genuinely scary ending. But this is a film that needs the presence of a large participatory audience (and perhaps midnight). In the mostly empty lower level of the Minor at the screening I attended, the film’s amateurishness was all too apparent and the action repetitive, and the film seemed more about a lousy relationship than a haunting. But then, lousy relationships have their own just desserts. Rated R for language. 86m. At the Broadway, Minor and Fortuna.

Continuing

ASTROBOY. A young robot is given super strength and x-ray vision. Kids love this stuff. Rated PG. 94m. At the Broadway and Mill Creek.

CAPITALISM: A LOVE STORY. Michael Moore vs. Wall Street. Who will surrender first? Rated R. 127m. At the Movies.

CIRQUE DU FREAK: THE VAMPIRE’S ASSISTANT. A 14-year-old vampire joins a circus freak show. Rated PG-13. 109m. At the Broadway, Mill Creek and Fortuna.

1 2 3 4 5 NEXT PAGE >SHARE