Ghost hunting and Paranormal Activity 2

Are ghosts really scary anymore? In a world increasingly ruled by science and technology, is there room for superstitious hocus pocus such as poltergeists, demons and other assorted ghouls?

Is there really any dramatic mileage left in the now familiar 'found footage' genre, the stylistic conceit made popular again by The Blair Witch Project in 1999, and used repeatedly afterwards in such films as REC, Cloverfield, Quarantine and, of course, last year's surprise hit, Paranormal Activity?

The answer to both of these questions, I've discovered, is a resounding yes. For despite my low expectations for Paranormal Activity 2, I found this slightly higher budget, slightly more expansive sequel to be one of the most tense, gratifyingly chilling films I've seen in a cinema this year.

Where the gorier end of the horror genre has spent the past few decades gouging out eyes to increasingly numbing effect, Paranormal Activity 2, like its predecessor, follows a more subtle tradition that has its roots in spooky fireside tales dating back to the dawn of time.

It's surprising, in fact, in our quick fix era of YouTube clips and 140-character messaging, that genre films as infuriatingly slow as Paranormal Activity 2 still exist. Entire scenes are devoted to static shots of domestic interiors, and its jolts are frequently derived from something as mundane as a falling saucepan. (It should be noted, in passing, that Paranormal Activity 2 features some of the most gorgeous kitchenware you'll see in the cinema all year.)

This devotion to slow build-up will probably leave Saw fans impatiently checking their text messages, but for those who do find themselves caught up in its ambience, Paranormal Activity 2 is remarkably engrossing, even to a cynical ghost denier such as myself. Before I knew it, I was leaning forward in my seat, studying its static shots for signs of any spectral presence. And when the spooks did materialise, it was with hackle-raising effect.

As I later discovered, watching Paranormal Activity 2 is uncannily like real-life ghost hunting, since it involves long stretches of waiting in the darkness for something to happen.

Once the film had finished, your humble writer and a few dozen other people were ushered onto a bus and driven to the London Tombs, a series of subterranean tunnels dressed up with replica historical artefacts and dismembered limbs (rubber ones).

There, our hosts regaled us with spooky tales of the tunnels' history, which were once a burial site for hundreds of 14th century plague victims. We then fiddled around with crystals on chains, and tinkered with divining rods. We crowded around a table and watched as a glass moved around its polished surface beneath our fingertips.

By torchlight, we held seemingly endless vigils in the dusty underground air as our guides called out to the spirits who, they said, lurked silently in the gloom. At one point, a small stone hit one of our party member's legs. Others said they felt a hand on their head, or a sudden rush of cold air.

The cynic in me wonders whether ghosts do lurk in ancient places, like commuters at a bus stop. And if they did, would they really spend the afterlife performing parlour tricks, like moving a glass tumbler, or tipping over a wobbly table?

But even with my curmudgeonly mindset, I couldn't help noticing the occasional flutter of strangeness myself. Was that distant glint of light a few yards down the tunnel something supernatural, or a mere electrical fault? When we were asked to form a circle and my arm raised up apparently by itself, was that thanks to the spirits of the dead or my own tiredness and suggestibility?

I'll also admit that a part of me that wanted to be scared, or at least wanted to experience something otherworldly. When I or another member of the group gasped an occasional "What was that?" it was uttered with equal parts anxiety and hope.

Like ghost hunting, Paranormal Activity 2's propensity to inspire fear depends entirely on the viewer's mindset. To some, the film's slow pace and utensil-based scares will seem laughably toothless, an extended reel of dull CCTV footage punctuated by the occasional slamming of a drawer.

But for those willing to engage in PA2's quiet rhythm, they'll find its gradual amplification of shocks surprisingly effective. I'm still not convinced that ghosts exist, but Paranormal Activity 2 has convinced me that they can still evoke a palpable sense of fear on screen.

You can read our review of Paranormal Activity 2 here.