New Paranormal Activity 2 Clip: Ordinary is Scary

Well, new ish, as there are about a hundred different clips of Paranormal Activity 2 on the internet at the moment. This does look interesting though; not least costume wise. In a very ordinary way.

Despite this clip being only seven seconds long it does shed potentially enormous light on the new story. It is also a bit spoilery if you have not seen the first film, so bear that in mind before you watch:

Hmm, that’s possible prequel territory – although probably not worth speculating over too deeply as we will find out for definite in a few days.

What is interesting, however, even in this mini-clip, is the deliberately commonplace appearance projected with the costume design by Kristin M. Burke (yes, she contributes to Clothes on Film and, yes, she is utterly wonderful). In contrast to a lavish period drama with Hornton lace trimmed dresses and braided frock coats; this is all about costume not being noticed.

Put simply the ‘found footage’ has to be real. Lots of simple, easy care clothes, reused and treated in an everyday way, i.e. not constantly cleaned and pressed. The film, shot with a largely unknown cast, had a lengthy production period for such a deceptively straightforward look on screen. Of course that is the whole idea; to seem as natural and unstructured as possible.

Paranormal Activity 2 (directed by Tod Williams) is released in the UK and U.S. on 22nd October. Don’t forget though, there will be no sofa to hide behind in the cinema… allowScriptAccess=