Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Mild
- eerie
- foreboding
- claustrophobic
- late night horror marathon
- halloween viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly found the sequel effective at delivering jolts and atmosphere, while noting diminishing returns and limited innovation in its familiar formula.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Dennis installs cameras throughout the house, and the story unfolds through the resulting nighttime recordings.
Toby manifests through strange household events and unseen activity before the entity is clearly understood.
Young Kristi and Katie experience the haunting while adults investigate an increasingly dangerous presence.
The California family house is divided into monitored rooms where nighttime disturbances accumulate.
Films like Paranormal Activity 3, and why
Paranormal Activity
shared found-footage presentation, domestic haunting, escalating supernatural dread, and family-centered vulnerability
Paranormal Activity 2
shared handheld surveillance aesthetics, demonic intrusion into a suburban home, and slow-building jump scares
The Blair Witch Project
shared found-footage horror, child endangerment, occult themes, and escalating paranormal menace
Insidious
shared family setting, supernatural entity, occult mythology, and disturbing child-centered horror
Movie Details
- Directors
- Henry Joost, Ariel Schulman
- Release Date
- 2011-10-19
- Runtime
- 83 min
- Rating
- 5.9 / 10 (2444)
Cast
- Katie Featherston
- Sprague Grayden
- Lauren Bittner
- Christopher Nicholas Smith
- Chloe Csengery
- Jessica Tyler Brown
- Marilyn Alex
- Dustin Ingram
- Jessica Berger
- Maria Olsen
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, MGM Plus, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Paranormal Activity 3 about?
- A surveillance-camera prequel turns a suburban family home into a pressure cooker of occult dread as two young sisters encounter an unseen entity.
- What is Paranormal Activity 3 like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Paranormal Activity 3 as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Paranormal Activity 3 violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Paranormal Activity 3 as mild.
- What did critics think of Paranormal Activity 3?
- Critics broadly found the sequel effective at delivering jolts and atmosphere, while noting diminishing returns and limited innovation in its familiar formula.
- Which films are like Paranormal Activity 3?
- Films with a similar feel include Paranormal Activity, Paranormal Activity 2, The Blair Witch Project, and Insidious.
- How long is Paranormal Activity 3?
- Paranormal Activity 3 runs 83 minutes.
- Where can I watch Paranormal Activity 3?
- In United States, Paranormal Activity 3 streams on fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, MGM Plus, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel.
