Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension (2015)★★★☆☆

This was a pretty good final installment of the franchise. It closed the loop on many of the questions brought up in the earlier films without bringing up too many questions on its own. I feel like I’ve got closure on the story.

Which isn’t to say it all adds up perfectly. I’m not really sure how The Marked Ones story and this film’s story work together (it seems as though that’s the intent). They seem like slightly different interpretations of the coven, though I’ll admit they aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive interpretations.

The pacing was better in this than it’s been the past few films, though the ending dog drag on a bit. The few jump scares in this one were so well timed that they didn’t feel cheap – and they all made me literally jump.

(Spoilers ahead) It’s worth noting that this one brings much of the story out of the viewer’s imagination and onto the screen – it’s no longer just an unseen presence. It (mostly) works for this film, but it’s a different type of horror than the others. While the effects are reasonably creepy, they likely won’t compare to the horrors your mind creates when faced with the unknown.

Fans who’ve stuck with the previous films should feel pretty good about this one. Honestly, if you’re thinking about watching any of them, I recommend watching the first, third, and this one. You’ll get a complete, (arguably) concise story, and skipping the others saves you almost five hours!