Paranormal Activity *spoilers probable*

[Gazz]

Reading wikipedia, I appear to have seen a different ending than whats described in the plot summary. I 'acquired' my copy from a source that shall remain nameless.

The ending I saw

Katie comes back upstairs with blood on her shirt and sits, rocking back and forth for nearly an entire day before eventually been shot by a cop.

Is this the theatrical release ending or something different?

[Gazz]

move along...

[Maxx]

Theatrical ending is described accurately on Wikipedia.

[Maxx]

If you'd like to watch the alternate ending...

http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/news/17897

[thatblindgeye]

Reading alternate versions on Wiki, apparently there are plans for a sequel to be made. What do the people that saw the film think about it? Could it just turn into another Blair Witch 2 disaster, or should a sequel just not be made regardless?

[Gazz]

Reading alternate versions on Wiki, apparently there are plans for a sequel to be made. What do the people that saw the film think about it? Could it just turn into another Blair Witch 2 disaster, or should a sequel just not be made regardless?

It'll be shit because it'll have a budget, CGI special effects and star Megan Fox.

[Gabriel]

Reading alternate versions on Wiki, apparently there are plans for a sequel to be made. What do the people that saw the film think about it? Could it just turn into another Blair Witch 2 disaster, or should a sequel just not be made regardless?

I don't get the hate for Book of Shadows. I mean, sure, it was a bigger budget film with less thought put behind it than the original, used mainly to capitalize on the name value of the original film... BUT, I found it to be a highly entertaining mindfuck of a movie. It could have been much better had they gone for substance over style, but that doesn't mean it was a terrible movie. I really liked it.

What I find with these types of films, is that they are so unique that in having a sequel, you absolutely cannot put out a movie in the same style as the follow-up. It would be incredibly underwhelming, and feel more like a big budget remake than an actual sequel. So where do you go from here really? Maybe turn it into a different kind of film, with the handheld camera still. A Demonologist and a group of his workers show up to the house, having used Micah's video to persuade the police that MAYBE something was going on. A cop tags along to make sure they're not just fucking around, and there you have a group of people to be tormented by the thing, a main character whose backstory allows for more explanation of who or what this demon is, and a good time for all.

[Herr Matzat]

The only reason anyone even remembers there was a Blair Witch 2 is that the first movie had the impact it had. - The Second Movie was just a big pill of nothing. Not scarry, not gorry, not well filmed, no good story. Could have been a TV movie.

I don´t think movies like these should ever have a sequell. With the titel Paranormal Activety you could just put out movies that have a different Paranormal Activety in em, but in genneral...

[zero]

I don't see the point in a sequel. Maybe if it revolves around an entirely different group of people and it's not a camera on a tripod filming them while they sleep.

Although... major spoilers

The incarceration and psychological interviews with a possessed Katie could make for a creepy movie.

[HailtotheYo]

you hit the nail on the had Zero ... that is exactly what I was thinking when I read over the wiki and possible 2nd movie bit.

I'd also buy the investigation into the house .... alluded earlier by someone with the demonologist coming by etc ... Micha's computer has plenty on it that could be explored and you could have plenty of 'footage' on the comp that maybe he hid from her, or have things that he didn't "catch" but the demonologist could .... Even though the impact of a second movie wouldn't be as the first, I feel there are a couple of angles and plenty of substance for a continuation of the story

[zero]

To HttK's point

I think a paranormal investigation using a similar style but in an entirely different location with a different cast would work, but you couldn't really investigate that house because the house wasn't haunted, Katie was.

[HailtotheYo]

To HttK's point

I think a paranormal investigation using a similar style but in an entirely different location with a different cast would work, but you couldn't really investigate that house because the house wasn't haunted, Katie was.

I misspoke:

By into the house, I literally meant inside of it. The footage captured with the camera and then whatever he had on the computer could all be parlayed into something as part of an investigation. Sure, Katie was the one with the haunting but there were actual physical elements to it with the door/picture-attic thing/light swaying .... all of those things and the attempt at "rational" explination could make for an interesting little flick. They did a fantastic job with the suspense/terror aspect of it by not actually "showing" the "it" ... I think there's plenty left to continue that.

I also feel that furthering the demonologist/psychic portion would be interesting as well. If that psychic were to come back to to investigate things (thinking fully that the thing was indeed wholly on Katie) then perhaps there could be more to it (as the scene where they call him back and he's like 'f this - this thing is pissed that I'm here')

[Big Red Fury]

I thought the ending was both good and crappy. I think it could have been better if the body had just been thrown at the camera and that was it. The whole sniffing the body and growling at the camera thing was unnecessary plus the whole Unbreakable style ending with "The cops found Micah's Body" "Katie is missing" was lame. Oh and how did the cops know to come check it out?

[zero]

I thought the ending was both good and crappy. I think it could have been better if the body had just been thrown at the camera and that was it. The whole sniffing the body and growling at the camera thing was unnecessary plus the whole Unbreakable style ending with "The cops found Micah's Body" "Katie is missing" was lame. Oh and how did the cops know to come check it out?

How would the cops know to come check it? When both of them stopped showing up to work or school? When their families couldn't get in touch with them?

[Big Red Fury]

I thought the ending was both good and crappy. I think it could have been better if the body had just been thrown at the camera and that was it. The whole sniffing the body and growling at the camera thing was unnecessary plus the whole Unbreakable style ending with "The cops found Micah's Body" "Katie is missing" was lame. Oh and how did the cops know to come check it out?

How would the cops know to come check it? When both of them stopped showing up to work or school? When their families couldn't get in touch with them?

But if I remember the time stamp correctly, they came THAT day. I agree that over time someone would alert them but THAT day? I just can't get behind that whole ending past throwing his body into the camera.

[zero]

Authorities found the Benoit family within 24 hours of the last correspondence anyone had with him. And wasn't the Demonologist scheduled to come that day? The minute anyone can't get ahold of them, yet their cars are in the driveway, I would suspect that someone would call the police to check on their well-being. Not digging the ending, I totally understand, it may not be for everyone, but this complaint is just silly.

[RPS]

I think I've been scared by maybe one or two movies in my entire life, and I watch a lot of horror movies. Paranormal Activity wasn't scary in my mind outside of the ending, however, I remember feeling incredibly tense watching the entire movie. It was very unsettling. It truly was fan-dabi-dozi cinema and ranks among some of the other modern day horror classics - Saw, Blair Witch & Scream - as movies that will continue to gain a reputation of being tremendously scary. But like the aforementioned movies, no sequel will even come close to being as scary as the original.

[apsham]

I really wasn't all that excited when I got dragged out to it last week, but then again I hadn't heard any of the hype at all. I was pleasently surprised, I usually don't like these kinds of movies and I lost my shit at the end.. the whole movie built up to that whole part perfectly and after reading the alternate endings, yeah I prefer the way they decided to go with it way more than the alternate cuts. For sure it's something that is going to work best on the big screen at at least with a proper home entertainment system because I just don't see it having as fan-dabi-dozi of an atmosphere otherwise.

Oh and I have to state; at my viewing there was a problem with the projectors and after the previews and the "Shut off your cell phone, asshole" message there was just a black screen. For a really long time. Everyone in the packed theatre thought that it was legit a part of the whole movie experience.. pitch black and nothing happening, everyone was making noises like they thought something was going to happen just out of the blue to freak your shit out and it really made the whole place tense for the rest of the movie.

Edited November 10, 2009 by apsham

[JairusCain]

I thought the ending was both good and crappy. I think it could have been better if the body had just been thrown at the camera and that was it. The whole sniffing the body and growling at the camera thing was unnecessary plus the whole Unbreakable style ending with "The cops found Micah's Body" "Katie is missing" was lame. Oh and how did the cops know to come check it out?

How would the cops know to come check it? When both of them stopped showing up to work or school? When their families couldn't get in touch with them?

But if I remember the time stamp correctly, they came THAT day. I agree that over time someone would alert them but THAT day? I just can't get behind that whole ending past throwing his body into the camera.

Uhh, maybe you're getting your endings mixed up.

In the theatrical ending, I could've sworn it said that Micah's body was discovered by authorities 2 weeks later and Katie was nowhere to be found. Them finding him two weeks later is perfectly believable for reasons mentioned already - with family not being able to reach them and them not showing up for work and class.

In the original ending (Katie rocking back and forth for something like 24 hours or whatever it was), Katie's sister showed up and found Micah's body downstairs. She freaked, ran out of the house and immediately called police. I believe it was two hours later on the time stamp that the police arrived at the house to investigate.

So, either way, the timing of the police arriving makes perfect sense in both endings...

[Big Red Fury]

It's entirely possible that I read the time stamp wrong but either way it was a lame ending before the time stamp and still lame after it.