The film “Paranormal Phenomenon” refers to the “found film” genre, which presents viewers what is happening on the screen as a video of real events shot by their participants. This technique is used to enhance the impression of a scary story by giving it credibility. Viewers are usually told that the owners of the detected film were killed or missing. This genre has existed for a long time, but gained significant popularity only in the last decade. One of the successful projects was the film "Paranormal Phenomenon", the list of all parts of which includes six paintings, not counting an unofficial sequel to Japanese production.
History of creation
The author of the famous franchise is an American director of Israeli origin Oren Peli. Part 1 of the "Paranormal" had a record low budget and was withdrawn within 10 days. Oren Peli performed the work of screenwriter, cameraman and editor. The set was served by his own house. The commercial success of the picture is amazing: the profit exceeded the investment in production by 13 thousand times. No project in the history of cinema can be compared in this respect with the film "Paranormal." All parts removed subsequently were less successful commercially. But the fantastic popularity of the low-budget horror movie with a banal plot revived the genre of "found film." Producers and directors from different countries have created numerous imitations and parodies on this subject.
First part
The film, which laid the foundation for a whole series of stories about supernatural phenomena, was shot in 2007. He tells the story of a young family who moved to a new home. Their names are Mika and Katie. The couple has the habit of filming their daily life on a camcorder. They are influenced by the demon that Katie has been following since childhood. In the final, Mika dies, and the main character goes missing. Despite the simplicity of the plot, the film received positive ratings from film critics. The independent experimental film was an unexpected breakthrough and opened a list of all parts of Paranormal.
The second part of
The following picture was shot by director Tod Williams in 2010. According to the creators, it serves both as a background and a continuation of the first part. The main character is Christie, the sister of the heroine of the previous film. After the birth of her son, she begins to notice that inexplicable things are happening in her house. Film materials are presented to the audience as video recordings. In some scenes, an amateur hand-held camera was additionally used. In the finale, obsessed with the demon, Katie, who is considered missing, appears and abducts her nephew. Christy and her husband die.
The third part
The picture takes place in 1988. The film tells about the childhood of Katie and Christie, the heroines of the previous two parts. In the house of their parents, they first encounter a demon that will haunt them all their lives. Their alarmed family is trying to capture strange phenomena on a camcorder. The third series was created in 2011 by directors Henry Just and Eriel Schulman. They replenished the list of all parts of Paranormal Phenomenon with the next film, shot a few months later.
Fourth part
The central place in the plot is occupied by high school student Alex, who lives with her family in the suburbs. She is faced with the actions of supernatural forces, behind which is missing in the first film by Katie. The picture contains a noteworthy episode in which the characters try to detect an invisible demon in the dark using Kinect technology. The film, which continued the list of all parts of Paranormal, received very restrained reviews from critics. In their opinion, the main drawback of the scenario is the lack of fresh ideas.
Fifth Part ("Devil's Mark")
Director and screenwriter Christopher Landon in 2014 became the creator of the first spin-off of the Paranormal Phenomenon series. He decided not to break the tradition and make a film in the "found film" genre. The plot has no direct connection with the events of the previous parts. The film tells the story of several high school students who were attacked by members of a mysterious demonic cult. Feedback from viewers suggests that the film breathed new life into the project, but its box office did not live up to expectations.
Sixth part ("Ghosts in 3D")
The premiere of the last film at the moment took place in 2015. He talks about the mystical incidents in the life of a young family. After moving to a new home, a married couple discovers a box of old video cassettes. The records of 21 years ago capture the ritual that Katie and Christy went through to join the demonic cult. After some time, the family is exposed to supernatural forces. The main goal of the demon is the 6-year-old daughter of the spouses. For the first time in the history of the franchise, 3D visual effects were used in this picture.
Perspectives to Continue
Viewers unanimously acknowledge the first film as the best part of Paranormal. As often happens with sequels, each new series is worse in quality than the previous one. The creators said that the sixth film should be the final one. But how many parts of the Paranormal Phenomenon can be removed depends only on the interest of the audience. It is difficult to believe that a project that is exceptionally successful in a commercial sense will not be continued.