PARANORMAL ACTIVITY
While You Were Sleeping
RELEASED OUT NOW! 2009 | 15 | Blu-ray
Directors Oren Peli
Cast Katie Featherstone, Micah Sloat,
Ashley Palmer, Mark Fredrichs
Oren Peli’s no-budget thriller remains a fine example of the found footage genre. Micah (Micah Sloat) and Katie (Katie Featherston) are enduring increasingly restless nights, thanks to an unseen presence in their house. Naturally, Micah decides that filming all this is the right course of action…
Like its key influence The Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity’s tension comes from a semi-improvised script, grimy footage and extended scenes where virtually nothing happens – terrifyingly. While it doesn’t have quite the same unnerving sense of vérité as its predecessor (a scene with a ouija board crosses into Hollywood cliché) it still pokes at a late night worry: what if something is watching us sleep?
Extras Second Sight’s Limited Edition is a good upgrade on the old bonus-light UK Blu. The sole deleted scene (three minutes) expands upon the backstory of the demon’s previous victim. An alternate ending (five minutes) is largely the same as the theatrical cut, but with a final nasty sting, while the original festival ending from 2007 (seven minutes) takes a different approach, stretching the story into the following day. Both are fascinating, but you can see why the “real” ending was chosen.
In-depth new interviews with Peli (39 minutes), Featherstone (30 minutes), Sloat (25 minutes) and Ashley Palmer (16 minutes) go into the making of the film and its huge impact. There are also two commentaries: one from Peli, another by podcast hosts Mary Beth Mcandrews and Terry Mesnard. Plus: trailers; TV spots; a softcover book of essays; six art cards. Will Salmon
Paramount paid $200,000 to reshoot the ending, but given the film grossed $7.9 million, probably didn’t mind too much.