If there was one franchise that you could slap with the title "Cash Grab" Paranormal Activity would be that film. From the get-go, the franchise made it clear it that it was not about creating solid horror films, but creating easy money sources. I put them on the same level as the Scary Movie franchise. If there is any proof of these statements, this would be it:
Paramount Pictures and Blumhouse Productions have announced that they will be releasing not one, but two sequels to the spooky ghost franchise in 2014. This news come after we recently found out that there will be no spooky ghost story this Halloween. What they are going to do is release a Latino spin-off (really?) under the Paranormal name on January 3rd (it was originally titled OT: Oxnard Tapes but they changed the name to Paranormal Activity: Marked Ones) and will be releasing the official sequel, Paranormal Activity 5, on October 24th.
So there you have it, the spookiness resumes, just a year later than expected.
- Rg Lovecraft
Any horror fan who has gone to seen a horror
film in their local theater in the past two months has inevitably seen
the trailer for Jason Blum’s new picture, The Purge, directed
by James DeMonaco and starring (big surprise) Ethan Hawke. If you’re
not familiar with either name, Jason Blum (founder and CEO of Blumhouse
Production) is responsible for supplying countless teenage boys with
much needed jump scares to get their girlfriends into their laps for the
first time. His list of credits includes Paranormal Activity (1 - soon to be 5), Insidious (1 and soon to be 2), Sinister, and The Amityville Horror: The Lost Tapes. I’m just such a huge fan.
Regardless, there may be hope. For me atleast. Look, I
totally get why people enjoy these movies. I just don’t find them scary,
I find them annoying, but I don’t want you to think I’m some biased
asshole. I watch them, I just rarely find them good enough to warrant
discussion.As mentioned before, I will review without bias and keep my
own opinions from getting in the way of bringing you honest horror
movies. Hell, I want to like them too, so it helps me as well.
Regardless, back to the main point, The Purge. Now, Blum did produce The Lords of Salem so I’ll give him some credit, but I am very interested in The Purge. My
kind of horror is real. It’s gritty, it’s nasty, it’s rooted in reality
and it could be happening down the street from you at any given time.
That’s what scares me. While the basic premise of this film is based in
fantasy land, it still hold the realism that I look for in movies which
is “People are fucked up enough to do stuff like this. Someone could come
to my house right now and do this to me if they really wanted to”. Love it.
Here’s the official synopsis: “In an America wracked by
crime and overcrowded prisons, the government has sanctioned an annual
12-hour period in which any and all criminal activity-including
murder-becomes legal. The police can’t be called. Hospitals suspend
help. It’s one night when the citizenry regulates itself without thought
of punishment. On this night plagued by violence and an epidemic of
crime, one family wrestles with the decision of who they will become
when a stranger comes knocking.”
Sounds pretty groovy right? I’d love to see Blumhouse break out of
the supernatural that they seem so hellbent on sticking to, it’s just
getting old. Atleast in my opinion. Regardless, you can check out the
one sheet below and head here for the trailer. And as always, feel free to share your thoughts. I love to see what other folk are thinkin’.
- Rg Lovecraft
