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A big fan of this series (my name even gets a fan credit in #1!), I thought the trailer for PA4 was awful. And the "viral campaign" never took off like it did for #2 and #3. It was as if even those involved simply weren't very committed/interested in the film they were making.
The reviews were ALL tepid--even those that sort of praised it--and word of mouth was dismal. The "actual people watching the film" TV ad was so over-the-top, it became a joke.
And then the film itself was a mess. Why have the wink-wink "in jokes" of the kid riding the bike like THE SHINING? It takes us "out" of the movie we're watching...and ads zero to the film. Same with the first
fake" drag scene of the girl. Again, why remind us that we're watching a movie, why take us out of the experience?
And NOTHING happens for so long into this movie, it's just people talking and talking and talking. The few little scares are already shown in the trailer, which they have done before...but those are the ONLY scares! So we are not surprised.
And it's clear that the writers/directors had no real ideas of what Toby was to do this time. In other words, WHY does he levitate the girl? If the goal is to kill everyone, that just do it. The levitation scene is simply to impress US, the viewers. But we've seen that before, in a dozen films...and in the trailer! So there is no shock or surprise. And why bounce the ball down the stairs? And why is there scene after scene in the dark with the xBox? Toby is "better" than moving some dots around but they feature that xBox feature into the ground.
Finally, the ending (no spoiler, if you've seen PA3)...is the SAME ending as PA3. We learn nothing. In fact, you can remove PA4 and you've learned NOTHING. When PA5 comes out, hopefully the filmmakers have learned from the dismal box office, word of mouth and reviews for PA4 to PUT THE SCARES BACK IN. And have a REASON for the film.
All the above being said, I WILL buy PA4 and here's why: I wasn't that impressed with PA3 in the theater but the extra footage--not much, just a few scenes of Toby messing with the girls more--made for a MUCH more "sinister" film. Not sure why they were cut from the film, but they really add to PA3. Same with PA2--and maybe these movies are just better seen at home.
So, here's hoping that PA5 will really deliver. They know what a mess PA4 was, so let's hope they have learned their lessons.
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Paranormal Activity has become the "Police Academy" of horror films, with a sequel each year targeted at a particular type of audience, with a similar plot and familiar characters each time out. This year, the pickings are very slim, as this is by far the worst film of the four. Scares are few and far between, the acting is terrible, and the film is ALMOST IDENTICAL to Paranormal Activity 2, with the same exact ending as Paranormal 3.With a budget this big and a devoted audience, it is an insult to the integrity and to the intelligence of the loyal fans to put out a lackluster film such as this. They have obviously run out of ideas and are already rehashing the same scenes over and over again. Unless you are a huge fan of the franchise, don't seethis film. Not only are the first three better, but they are almost identical.
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That would have been a better name for this film. Basically, it scoops up the same ideas as before and inserts a different (and much worse) cast of actors and a new setting. Everyone is pretty bland and boring. The boyfriend will annoy you as soon as he appears and it only gets worse from there. You will start to root for the demons to pick everyone off and that's always a bad sign.Also, there is no suspense or sense of foreboding. I kept waiting to be scared and nothing ever really took off. Katie makes brief appearances and sports her demon face again as we saw in the first film. The two main characters mimic the two teenagers from the second film. The ending reflects the ending of part 3. It really adds nothing new or interesting to even make it worth watching.
The first two films were great. They were suspenseful and added new ideas and scares. Plus the cast in the first two films were much much better. PA3 was definitely a downgrade in quality. It was confusing, the scares were minimal, the cast was medicore and it left a lot to be desired after the first two films. Still, I liked the idea of a prequel and it being set in the 1980s. It's worth at least one watch.
PA4 is just a major disappointment. Sometimes it's better to quit when you're ahead. But sadly, the studios will keeping making these films if they can make a profit regardless of how horribly it's made. Let's stop supporting bad quality.
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