Paranormal thr [Christian] Movie

Posted by owner on March 9, 2010

A Review

Don’t confuse this Paranormal, by Cross Shadow Productions located in Apex, North Carolina, with the Hollywood production of the same name. This is a film that asks whether today’s interest in paranormal phenomena “is a harmless fascination . . . or something more sinister.” The film answers that question, too. Unequivocally.

To put this film in perspective, come back with me some thirty plus years. There are only two or three channels on the TV in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and teenage Sue has been watching one while baby sitting for neighbors. As the last news show ends, she switches channels and finds a movie. It’s interesting. About archaeology, and Egypt. She watches, fascinated, as a sarcophagus is discovered. Then someone says something about Tannin leaves, and brews a tea. The next thing she knows there’s a mummy, all wrapped in dirty, ragged cloths, walking with a shambling gate, arms outstretched, intent on kidnapping the heroine. Sue is terrified. But she fascinated too. Despite her pounding heart, she can’t turn off the TV.

Today those mummy films seem funny rather than terrifying. But her reaction back then is typical of many youth today who go to movies wanting to be frightened. They want the thrill . . . the pounding heart . . . the jolts of adrenalin. . . the fright.

Matt Mitchell and the friends who created Paranormal intend to give them what young people seem to want. And more. Along with the scares, the movie raises the question of whether fooling with the paranormal might involve us in something far more sinister than we expect. Is it possible the occult isn’t a “harmless fascination” at all?

The movie Paranormal gets off to a slow start. Some young people with the kind of electronic equipment used in the paranormal research portrayed on a half-dozen documentary-type TV shows are in an old, abandoned hospital. Later we see them banter and watch a budding romance, and we wonder when will something happen. Don’t stop watching. The slow start is disarming, and as the story develops the pacing gets faster and faster and reaches a truly scary climax as the teens and the dad who’s the focus of this tale confront a real demon, and discover what’s actually behind authentic paranormal phenomena.

I won’t go into detail on the story and spoil the movie for you. I will say that the events that lead to the demonization of the dad of one of the young paranormal researchers are authentic doorways through which evil enters. And that the Christian wife and the preacher who are the “heroes” of the story portray an authentic biblical response to demons. What’s important about the movie is that along with its warning about the dangers of occult practices such as Ouija, the movie sets the stage for some significant discussion and Bible study. Recognizing this, Cross Shadow provides a free downloadable Bible study guide which can be used by families or by church youth group leaders who show the movie. As noted in the earlier interview with Matt, having a lock-in with a youth group, playing games till about 10 PM, then showing the 98-minute movie followed with a midnight Bible study on the issues it raises, is a fantastic way to use this film.

I do need to make a few observations. The film is formatted for wide screen, and it helps if your TV can adjust to this format. The actors do a good job, but the sound quality is a problem sometimes. At times the picture quality is a problem too, particularly when shifting from scene to scene. But if the technical quality doesn’t rise to the level of Hollywood, no one should be surprised. What this film is does do makes it is far superior to Hollywood’s offerings anyway.

I do need to add one caveat. The film conveys a palpable sense of evil. That sense of evil concerned one member of my household so much she was praying during much of the film against demons who might use the images as an entry point. I sensed that evil too, and thought it was totally appropriate. Satan is evil, and he seeks to ruin lives in just the ways this film portrays. I hope everyone who sees the film not only becomes aware of how evil enables the Devil to gain a hold on humans, but also realizes the need for reliance on Jesus Christ. Only he can save us from the evil in our lives and from the dark forces that roam the spirit world. This is a central theme in Paranormal, and Jesus is lifted up.

To find out how to purchase a DVD of Paranormal, go to www.Paranormalthemovie.com now.