The defence The Arthouse Gremlin
“Its refusal to behave is the point.”
The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.
Back to trending 
Paranormal Activity
Horror · Mystery · 2007
After a young, middle-class couple moves into what seems like a typical suburban house, they become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be demonic but is certainly the most active in the middle of the night.
Movie details
Paranormal Activity
“What happens when you sleep?”
2007 Horror · Mystery 1h 26m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.1 / 10
Community rating
After a young, middle-class couple moves into what seems like a typical suburban house, they become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be demonic but is certainly the most active in the middle of the night.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over Paranormal Activity?
For the defence
The Arthouse Gremlin
“The stranger, the better.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Prestige Tourist
“You like your greatness pre-approved.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
Paranormal Activity 3
Horror · 2011
In 1988, young sisters Katie and Kristi befriend an invisible entity who resides in their home.
The Deep House
Horror · 2021
While diving in a remote French lake, a couple of YouTubers who specialise in underwater exploration videos discover a house submerged in the deep waters. What was initially a unique finding soon turns into a nightmare when they discover that the house was the scene of atrocious crimes. Trapped, with their oxygen reserves falling dangerously, they realise the worst is yet to come: they are not alone in the house.
It Follows
Horror · 2015
A young woman is followed by an unknown supernatural force after a sexual encounter.
Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin
Horror · 2021
Margot is a documentary filmmaker looking to meet her long-lost mother and extended family in a secluded Amish community. She and her film crew soon realize the family that welcomes them into their home might be hiding a sinister secret.
Until Dawn
Horror · 2025
One year after her sister Melanie mysteriously disappeared, Clover and her friends head into the remote valley where she vanished in search of answers. Exploring an abandoned visitor center, they find themselves stalked by a masked killer and horrifically murdered one by one...only to wake up and find themselves back at the beginning of the same evening.
Smile
Horror · 2022
After witnessing a bizarre, traumatic incident involving a patient, Dr. Rose Cotter starts experiencing frightening occurrences that she can't explain.
The Possession of Michael King
Horror · 2014
The film tells the story of documentary filmmaker Michael King (Shane Johnson), who doesn’t believe in God or the Devil. Following the sudden death of his wife, Michael decides to make his next film about the search for the existence of the supernatural, making himself the center of the experiment – allowing demonologists, necromancers, and various practitioners of the occult to try the deepest and darkest spells and rituals they can find on him – in the hopes that when they fail, he’ll once and for all have proof that religion, spiritualism, and the paranormal are nothing more than myth. But something does happen. An evil and horrifying force has taken over Michael King. And it will not let him go.
Phoenix Forgotten
Horror · 2017
Twenty years after three teenagers disappeared in the wake of mysterious lights appearing above Phoenix, Arizona, unseen footage from that night has been discovered, chronicling the final hours of their fateful expedition.
Hell House LLC
Horror · 2015
Five years after an unexplained malfunction causes the death of 15 tour-goers and staff on the opening night of a Halloween haunted house tour, a documentary crew travels back to the scene of the tragedy to find out what really happened.
Barbarian
Horror · 2022
In town for a job interview, a young woman arrives at her Airbnb late at night only to find that it has been mistakenly double-booked and a strange man is already staying there. Against her better judgement, she decides to stay the night anyway.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Oren Peli
Written by
Oren Peli
Katie Featherston
Katie Featherston
Micah Sloat
Micah Sloat
Mark Fredrichs
The Psychic
Amber Armstrong
Amber
Ashley Palmer
Diane
C
Crystal Cartwright
Exorcism Nanny (uncredited)
S
Spencer Marks
Dr. Johann Averies (uncredited)
Court is in session
Put Paranormal Activity on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Prestige Tourist
“Oddness is not depth.”
A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.