In 2006, the most popular horror film series with sequels was “Saw,” a film simply about torture and extreme gore. Audiences may have grown tired of this tired, same old story of people being torn apart in the most gruesome ways possible, so why not do exactly the opposite and capitalize on it? “Paranormal Activity” is a very pathetic excuse for a new horror series. First released in 2007, the film centered on the idea that there is a ghost or "demon" haunting an unsuspecting couple, which will eventually kill at least one of them. This idea isn't original, but it still could have made for a decent horror film. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay However, with the use of the now new popular subgenre of horror called "found footage" and the lack of an interesting plot, the film failed to live up to the hype. Yet, somehow, 5 more films managed to be produced in the following years until 2015, becoming the new "Saw", as all but one of the films were released in late October to bring in extra revenue from Halloween. So why can a poorly written franchise have such a popular following (if you can call it that) or people who are completely willing to shell out money as soon as a new movie hits theaters? Based on the way “Paranormal Activity” was marketed, how it popularized the “found footage” subgenre, the way it uses cheap jump scares as substitutes for real horror, it perpetuates the use of stereotypes and profits from the idea that sequels are necessary for horror, the series became one of the most popular horror franchises of the late 2000s and early 2010s. Now, arguably the biggest and most important factor in the generating interest in a series for anything is publicity, and Hollywood never turns a blind eye to it. how much publicity they can do for the public. With “Paranormal Activity,” however, the way the film was presented was a little more unique than most standard trailers and TV spots. The way it was advertised covered both of the previously mentioned elements, but with a slight twist. Crucially, the trailers didn't actually show the film, hiding its mediocrity, and instead focused on showing a theater absolutely terrified to watch the film, with a night camera used to create a more chilling environment. This unique version of presentation made a difference in how the film was perceived. They did the classic show and didn't tell to create hype for the movie. People can relate to others feeling scared, and if the theater screamed, they would surely be too and have a great time if they went to see this movie. This is probably the smartest move the franchise has made in its entirety. Since no one knew how the movies would fare, they blindly believed that theater was an honest-to-God live reaction to “scary moments.” And it must be said that these trailers will be released around Halloween. Most horror films that intend to become popular depend on the excitement of Halloween for revenue. Previous examples of this are "Saw", "Halloween" and many others, as it would make sense to involve the audience in the spirit of the spooky season. The ads had such an impact on those who had never heard of "Paranormal Activity" and without them the film probably wouldn't have earned as much revenue as it did. The useof non-standard advertising is certainly one of the things that the producers of the series are most proud of. One of the main reasons why "Paranormal Activity" is so popular is because it made good use of "found footage." First used in 1999 with the film “The Blair Witch Project,” “found footage” is gaining a notable increase in popularity. While "The Blair Witch Project" has become popular in recent years, when it came out, people were even more upset that it wasn't as real as they thought. "Paranormal Activity" arrives, to change the face of the subgenre. Even though "Paranormal Activity" had the same claim to fame as "The Blair Witch Project" saying it was based on a true story, the way the camera was executed and the more satisfying ending with the disclaimer that was fake all along gave it more impact. The footage looked even more real, as they had the best angles thanks to the use of multiple cameras instead of the single one used in "The Blair Witch Project". “Paranormal Activity” had essentially changed the face of “found footage” by using the multi-camera approach method, which then inspired more “found footage” films as it became a much more immersive experience for the viewer. Now, why is “found footage” used so much more now than in the past? Simple, it saves manufacturers a lot of money. By going for a "cheaper" look using a simpler camera and less flashy shots, this allows a film to be made for much less than normal. Hollywood being the money grubber that it is, has been using this technique since they realized that they could make more money with less work. Now, of course, this doesn't mean that a movie will be bad because it costs less to make, but that might motivate the people working on the project to cut corners in other places too, like having good actors or a well-written plot. Unfortunately, this is where "Paranormal Activity" falls down, but since this is what happened to the franchise, there has been a greater effort on the part of other films to do better. Unfortunately for the series, the "horror" it uses isn't exactly good. horror. Jump scares are used constantly throughout the "Paranormal Activity" series, and that's the only thing that works. There is a "mystery" behind all the ailments, demons and whatnot, but that's not the part that scares the audience. The scariest parts are when a character is in the dark and completely silent, where a loud noise breaks in and unnerves everyone. This is the extent of “terror” in movies. This is the cheapest and most uncreative way to “scare” the public. This also leads to moments in the film being rather forgettable. Since only jumpscares are used, it is not possible to pinpoint which part of the film would scare them the most. Compared to films like "Halloween" where there is constant fear in the audience, "Paranormal Activity" does not present a series of scares throughout the film, it only thrives on insignificant scares that instead only create a slight heartbeat for a short time . to have your heart pounding during long, important parts of the film. This could easily be called a downgrade from what horror films had previously used. Horror films obviously evolved like any other genre to reflect the fears of the time. In the early 1900s, monster movies were the most popular, featuring classic monsters like Frankenstein and Dracula. The situation has changed in more popular films such as the aforementioned "Halloween", which are more part of the slasher genre, having fear of some killer on the loose who for some reason refuses to actually die. And now we have the horror kindwho is lazier and uses jump scares nowadays. This is why “Paranormal Activity” cannot be considered a good horror series, nothing stays with the audience as it walks away. No one will actually remember these types of films in years to come unlike the classic scary monster or slasher films because these new types of horror films are not memorable which is quite sad given that the films had the potential to scare the viewer. forever. Following Hollywood's example, a horror film or series would not be complete if it did not contain the stereotype of the suburban white family. Everyone jokes that white people are always used in horror movies because only white people would actually be in a haunted house, in the woods or wherever the place of danger is and I think that's all fine. This joke was created because horror movies usually only feature white families or friends who don't use common sense. “Paranormal Activity” is no different. In the first movie there's a white couple arguing about using a camera and nothing interesting until the guy dies from a ghost demon. The second film has a white family with a father who doesn't believe a demon ghost exists until the mother becomes possessed. The third film is about the women in the first two films and their childhood in the white family in the 80s and nobody. he believes the girls' mother's boyfriend is talking about the same ghost demon. The fourth film is about another white family who willingly takes in a strange child who acts out, allowing the demon ghost to torment and kill the family. You might get the idea that it's the same story of white people not believing the same thing over and over again. This gets very boring very quickly. Now, with such poor writing, it probably wouldn't matter if there were people of color instead of white, but surprisingly, the fifth film breaks the norm of these films by using a Hispanic family. Of course they were stereotyped too, living in a poorer and more dangerous area, but unlike white families, they are genuinely concerned as soon as they realize what is happening. So why add a different perspective of the demon in a horror series centered on the white family? Producers wanted to have a larger audience for their low-rated films. Not to appeal to the white demographic, but to the Hispanic demographic. This half-hearted attempt to attract more people into the audience makes the series seem racist to some. There's no real reason to change who these hauntings happen to because the fifth film barely refers to the other four. It was just to take money from non-white people. This hits a new low for horror, and these stereotypes quickly go from cliché to offensive, and this may be another reason why only one more film in the series was released, putting the final nail in the coffin. So, despite all these flaws, why would an audience member enjoy such bland horror? Of course any movie can become a guilty pleasure, something that is absolutely rotten can be loved by some people, but this series still demands more movies be released. Perhaps the audience wants to see an actual conclusion to the newly structured plot. Or maybe it's the fact that Hollywood has conditioned audiences to expect sequels. A single film can no longer contain all the answers for a franchise, it must be dragged to the max. The more movies there are in the series, the better the plot has to be, right? Not necessarily. Hollywood replaces quality with quantity in most recent films. As long as a movie has a plot but not all the answers,.