Paranormal Entity (2009) Starring Shane Van Dyke, Erin Marie Hogan, Fia Perera & Norman Saleet Written & Directed by Shane Van Dyke

Paranormal Entity is The Asylum's answer to Paranormal Activity, but from what I gather, the budget was quite a bit higher than the 2009 sleeper hit but still much lower than the usual Asylum fair. More money doesn't necessarily mean better quality, however, it more or less equals enough cash to get the hot chick in the film to show her tits more than a handful of times. Still, while this is a film that is far from perfect, surprisingly, Paranormal Entity is a near passable and some times even effective entry into the Cinéma vérité genre.

As is the case with many films of this genre, some low-life feels the need to try and capture all of these odd and unnatural occurrences on tape, and that someone would be the son of the family, Thomas. Thomas sets up cameras in all three of the bedrooms as well as one in the living room in the hopes of capturing some paranormal activity (see what I just did there?). From that point on, the film is basically the standard stuff that you would expect from a low level P.A. cash-in. Crosses fall off of walls, sheets are pulled off of a conveniently (and thankfully) half naked Samantha, doors slam shut, doors open, lights flicker and the Finley family becomes increasingly frightened for their physical safety as things escalate.

While there was more money to be spent, the decision to keep things minimal was the right way to go as far as recreating a film similar to its very own influence. There are only three thinly written characters (with a forth introduced in the final act), with one of them being played by the writer, producer and director of Paranormal Entity, Shane van Dyke. This is a movie that is made in the same 'spirit' (see what I did just there?) as Paranormal Activity, but the results are mixed, showing that what Peli did was one part achievable by anyone with a camera and a buck, while another part proves that those results aren't so easily attainable by just any average Joe filmmaker.

Now, I am a huge fan of the handheld genre. Something about it just works for me, and I can easily muster up a bit of fear and inner tensity when watching that style of film. Therefore, while Paranormal Entity cannot fully deliver what its more respected brethren have in the past, there where a few moments that gave me a solid jolt. There is a lot of static camera used, which, due to Paranormal Activity, I almost find an automatic sense of fear and curiosity as I watched every little detail of each room. But as I said, I am easily susceptible to said tactics, so take that as you may. The haunting moments themselves are all far from stellar and can easily be done by any old schmuck with a camera and a dream. Lights flickering and TVs turning on aren't difficult things to achieve, and neither is the before mentioned covers being pulled off of Samantha, which was hysterically obvious that a fishing line was used to do so.

One of the big issues with this film, and with many of the genre, is it has some serious downtime when there aren't any 'happenings' happening. The characters aren't all too interesting, or even likable for that matter, and there are long moments where things go down the lonely path of boring. There is a portion of Paranormal Entity where Ellen and Samantha leave their home to stay at a hotel, far from the threat of the evil presence that is plaguing them. When they leave, Thomas proceeds to set up the house for a good (well, not literally good) fifteen minutes so he will know exactly when and where the entity is if it does make an appearance in the absence of his mother and sister. To say it was a boring and overly drawn out scene would be like claiming genital warts are not a good look.

One thing I noticed was how Paranormal Entity was pretty straightforward for much of the first half. However, as the runtime ran down, exploitational elements are slowly introduced, mostly in the form of the Samantha character, who is clearly threatened sexually by this unseen menace. As those elements became more prevalent, it also became obvious that I was watching an Asylum movie. Which is fine, everything needs its place, and I don't mind that place being on my TV from time to time. Nevertheless, Paranormal Entity did have a good chance at being a contender at times, but in the end, the true colors showed through and kept it from fully leaving the playground in which the rest of The Asylum movies normally play.