Call me a sissy, a punk, whatever, I don’t care. I refuse to watch Paranormal Activity 3.

It’s not to say I think this franchise sucks or is like all the other horror franchises that have been beaten to the ground like the Saw and Friday the 13th films. I think the first Paranormal Activity released two years ago, scared me so much that I just don’t think I can bear to watch the further hauntings/adventures of Katie. I had a hard time sleeping for weeks! That film just gets you scared because the hauntings happen when you’re at your most vulnerable point, when you are sleeping. How can you defend yourself when you’re in that state? For anyone who doesn’t know, the first film was about a series of video tapings of a young couple being haunted late at night by an unseen, demonic force that grows more and more malevolent as the film progresses. A real slow burn.

Sure, I know a lot of you may laugh this off and say it’s just a film, not even based on a supposedly true event like The Amittyville Horror but the implications the films bring up that by trying to contact the other side you not only invite the unwanted evil forces into your life but empower them as well. That’s just how good the first film was, and from what I’ve heard the second film is more or less the same thing but still effective. Now I’m learning that the newest film is just as scary.

As much as I wanted to see the second film I couldn’t even watch the trailer on a full screen. By chance I caught a quick clip of a commercial of Paranormal Activity 3 the other night and it shows a video taping of some lady being levitated off the ground. That was enough for me.  Sorry I like to sleep peacefully at night.

This is probably a testament as to how effective the first film was, which is arguably the best “found footage” movie since The Blair Witch Project (and Cloverfield). I don’t know maybe one of these days, I’ll steel myself enough to watch the other two films.

Lewis T. Grove