PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2
Sub-Genre- Um... Paranormal?
Cast Members of Note- Katie Featherston, Sprague Grayden, Molly Ephraim, Brian Boland, Michah Sloat, and Abby the Dog.
What's it About?- Did you see the first one? Same thing. Well, it's a bit different, but for the most part it's about a mean ghost being mean to people, and creeping the shit out of me in the process. And I have news for you, it's way creepier than the first one. And better too. Still, it's mostly the same, except that it's roughly 60 days before the events of the first Paranormal Activity, and this time we get to see Katie's step sister and her family walk around their house filming every aspect of their lives too. They must be exhibitionists by nature, because seriously, who films shit that much around the house?
Anywho... after coming home to find their house trashed, they assume it was a break in of some sort, and have the house rigged with a bunch of security cameras. Their Mexican nanny-maid knows better though, and warns the family that "something isn't right" with their new abode, which of course, the gringo's ignore. Consuela tries to bless the house and chase away the evil spirits, which only serves to get her fired and departed. I hate white people.
Creepy things start to happen to everyone in the house, including the dog! The baby knows something is up, but much like the maid and the constantly barking dog, no one listens to him either. So as things get worse, it becomes apparent that the thousands of dollars spent on the security gear and cameras was a waste of money, as mom and dad refuse to acknowledge what they see on the tapes.
Will the family survive the spooky antics of the mean ghost? Will Consuela return and save the day? Will Katie show us her wonder puppies, or go in the completely opposite direction and just act creepy? No, kinda, and unfortunately, yes.
The Good- Better than the first one, PA 2 nearly made me poop my pants. I don't get truly skeeved out very often, but this movie rattled me a few times, and literally made my pucker ring clench. I'm being serious. It clenched. Not fun.
The dynamic of an entire family being menaced opened things up in the sequel, and in my opinion gave the story more places to go, and allowed for more twists and turns to keep us on edge as an audience. Especially compelling are the scenes involving the baby; it doesn't get more helpless than a baby being moved around by an evil spirit, or wandering a house in the middle of the night by itself.
This movie has a serious creep factor going for it too, which I though was much more effective than it was in the first movie. If you thought seeing Katie Featherston being dragged down the hallway in the first movie was terrifying, you haven't seen anything yet. Oh, and there's a particular scare that happens in the kitchen, which I won't ruin, but it literally mad me jump, yell "Fuck" and pee myself a little bit.
The Bad- Poor Sprague Grayden. Not only was she one of the stars of a doomed TV show which I loved , Jericho, that died an untimely death, but she died a painful and untimely death on another great show which I love, Sons of Anarchy, and it still hurts me to watch that show without her. Add to that the fact that she's haunted and abused at every turn by an evil spirit, which you know won't end good... the poor girl just cant catch a break! Maybe throw her a romantic comedy or something, Hollywood. She's been through enough already, and deserves a nice break.
The Downright Horrendous- For the second time in as many movies, we the audience are robbed of the one simple thing that we want from these movies, but thus far have yet to receive: gratuitous topless-ness from Katie Featherston. Pervy or not, you need to be honest and admit that her breasteses are things on wonder, even if they are mostly hidden wonders. She's a fine actress, and she might even have a golden personality that would captivate me like cocaine captivates Lindsay Lohan, but make with the tits already, Katie. Stop being a prude!
The Gory- Not so much on the gore, which was fine really.
The Naked- Nope. We do get to see plenty of wonderful Katie cleavage, and Sprague Grayden in a bath tub though.
What did we learn?- Don't screw over your step sister, as it will come back to bite you in the ass. Also, never dismiss the Mexican nanny-maid and her evil fighting abilities!
The Master Says- A (9.5/10) This was one hell of a sequel, and if you liked the first PA, you will most likely dig this one even more. Sure, the found footage genre seems a little passe' by now, but it can still be done effectively, and is done so here. Catch it if you haven't already in theaters, or wait for DVD which is really the best way to see a quiet, creepy flick like this one.Final Thoughts- She really needs to do a nude scene. Something with her taking a long, slow motion shower, or involving sapphic love of some kind. Maybe she could be "The Breast Whisperer", where ever time danger is near, her nipples tingle and she has to take her shirt off and caress herself for answers. If not that, then porn.
