Blu Release – 3/5
The Blair Witch Project
Director(s) – Daniel Myrick (Under the Bed, Believers) and Eduardo Sanchez (Supernatural, Yellowjackets)
Starring – Heather Donahue (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The Morgue), Michael C. Williams (Altered, Satanic Hispanics), and Joshua Leonard (Depraved, Torn Hearts)
Release Date – 1999
Rating – 3/5
Tagline – “In October of 1994 three student filmmakers disappeared in the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland while shooting a documentary… a year later their footage was found”
Getting old is something we all have to come to terms with and while I don’t think I’m that old I would be lying if I said being in my mid-thirties felt like it did when I was in my mid-twenties. One of the weirdest things about getting old is remembering specific moments in your life and how long it has been since they happened. When I was elementary and middle school I lived through some of the most iconic pop culture moments from the forming of NWO in WCW, the first Playstation, Tamagochi and DigiPets, Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinski, and the marketing around The Blair Witch Project.
I remember how exciting it was to talk with people at school about it. So many kids my age thought the movie was real and while I sometimes played into the hype I knew a movie depicting real deaths would never be allowed in theaters. Honestly, I can’t think of another horror release that caused such an stir like this one did with the public. I wasn’t able to watch it in theaters and by the time it made it’s way to VHS the cast had already been interviewed several times which ruined the image that the film was real. I remember thinking the film was alright but nothing that would stick with me over the years.
Hell, I still think about the weeks or months leading up to the premier of the movie when people thought it was real but I have never had the desire to revisit it. A few weeks back I received the blu steelbook release of the original film along with the 2016 sequel. I wanted to check them out during my October horror binge but couldn’t get them worked in. After spinning a few horror titles and an animated Batman film I figured now was the best time to check it out.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows three filmmakers who hike in deep into the Maryland wilderness to film a documentary on the legend of the Blair Witch. Along the way they find themselves lost and low on supplies and at night strange things happen at their camp site. As tempers come to a boil the three realize they are not alone in the woods and the legend is true. **Spoiler Alert**
Some genre fans incorrectly label The Blair Witch Project as the first found footage film which is the furthest from the truth. While it wasn’t the first to use this style of filmmaker, it was the film that revitalized it when it showed just how lucrative it could be to make a found footage film. While The Blair Witch has catapulted the found footage style films to popularity that is still seen to this day, it is a fairly dull film that doesn’t really come into it’s own until the last 15 or 20 minutes. I respect the hell out of the marketing for the film but the movie itself is nothing special. It’s solid for a first time watch but I believe that many fans remember the hype and rumors surrounding the film during it’s initial release and it heavily influences what they thing of the film itself.
The acting in this one is other-worldly. I seriously hate reviewing the acting in found footage films because the cast is trying so hard to make it feel like they are recording themselves doing the most mundane tasks. These scenes are usually abysmal to watch and when I’m not rolling my eyes I’m checking the display to see how much is left of the film. I can’t say the same about the acting in The Blair Witch Project. Their small talk, banter, and other dialogue just feels genuine. It doesn’t feel forced or as awkward to watch as the found footage films that soon followed.
The story for this follows a legend that filmmakers Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez created prior to production and built the mythos just for the film’s purpose. Many argue that the Blair Witch was a legend prior to the film’s release but that is not the case. However, when you have a marketing campaign like this one anything can happen. We have a strong background centered around the lore of the witch and when you add in a group of amateur filmmakers documentary their adventure into the woods searching for any hint of the witch’s existence is pure gold. The found footage aspect does make it feel more genuine than if it was a standard film. I respect the hell out of it but it’s because of the found footage style and attention to detail that makes it a mediocre film. I would have preferred a more traditional approach to the story with more attention toward the legend itself and not their journey.
Finally, the film has zero effects. We get some rock piles, stacks of sticks, and noises in the dark and that is all the movie needs to strike fear in the viewer. No one in the production of this film was setting out to create a classic or something with such longevity. They wanted to make a movie that people thought was real and once the luster wore off then so did the scares. I couldn’t imagine sitting in a theater with a group of people who went into thinking the people on camera had died or was missing but I bet it was an amazing experience. It’s the mindset that they are dead that made this movie so fucking eerie.
Overall, The Blair Witch Project s a film with tremendous historical important for cinema. It was the film that forever made found footage a staple of the genre and it’s marketing and advertising campaign is something that was never seen before or we will see again. The film itself is one of those horror films that is considered the middle of the road. If you have never seen it by this point I would recommend it for a first time watch but it’s not something I would recommend revisiting after sometime or double dipping on the film. Considering the rarity of the blu I would say this UHD is worth it.
Blair Witch
Director – Adam Wingard (You’re Next)
Starring – James Allen McCune (The Walking Dead), Callie Hernandez (Machete Kills), and Corbin Reid (Disney Star Darlings)
Release Date – 2016
Rating – 2.5/5
Tagline – “There’s something evil hiding in the woods”
Several years back I decided to head to the movies with some friends to watch Blair Witch. One of my favorite memories in horror was when the original Blair Witch Project was announced. The film would go on to inspire an entire sub-genre of horror but would be far from the first found footage film to be released. People went crazy over the marketing for the film. The team went above and beyond to convince people that this was an authentic found footage film and, for the most part, they would succeed. A fairly large portion of people believed that it was real. I have to admit that before I saw the film I was one of the few that did but I want to blame that on my youth and childlike wonder. That only lasted a short time until I saw some of the crew on an awards show a short time after the release. BWP is one of those films I have to be in the mood to watch or I don’t appreciate it.
When I first heard that the film was getting a direct sequel I was curious how it would be handled. Most of you know how much I love remakes and sequels but I could not figure out how someone could approach the first BWP and make a sequel. How do you capture what the first film gave us? The answer is simple, you cant.
**Spoiler Alert**The film follows footage that was shot in 2014 and later found. It follows a group of twenty-somethings who are searching for the missing sister of one of the young men. She went missing in 1994 when making a documentary on the Blair Witch in Maryland. Now he is the subject of a new documentary. They found footage on YouTube where he believes it was his sister and meet up with the publisher of the video to show them where the footage was found. They meet up and hike to their first camp site where they have a pretty uneventful day but that night they hear loud noises and trees crashing but nothing is ever seen.
When they awake they find insignias made out of sticks hung around their tents. They pack up their gear and flee but soon discover that it was a hoax perpetrated by the guy that uploaded the video along with his girlfriend. They force them to separate where the group uses GPS to get back to their cars but the GPS fails and end up back where they camped the night before. They set up camp again and soon learn that the legend of the Blair Witch is not a hoax and anyone that stays the night in her woods never leave them again.**Spoiler Alert**
I went into this film with an open mind but I was curious more than anything. Was this film going to serve as a remake repackaged as a sequel, would it be a direct sequel to the original film or would it be a meta-sequel like Book of Shadows? I would be lying if I didn’t mention how excited I was to see this in a theater. I would have loved to see the original film in a theater. Sadly, the film was a bit of a let down in most aspects. It had a some things I really liked but there was more that I did not.
The acting in this one is good. It kept in the same tune as the first film. The cast doesn’t try to sell the scenes but carries natural conversation before they are scared shitless. This is the way to make a found footage flick look authentic. The cast was great but my favorite performance was from Wes Robinson. He was bat shit insane and he only added to the atmosphere that made the ending enjoyable.
The story for this one is what left me disappointed. The first film flows like an amateur documentary. We get a lot of backstory and interviews on the legend of the Blair Witch for those that were not well versed in this legend. It then takes a dark turn and pits the three filmmakers against some of the things from the legend before giving the viewer an abrupt but eerie ending.
This sequel picks up 20 years later (footage for BWP was 1994 but release in 1999 and Blair Witch footage is 2014 and released in 2016) but gives the viewer a story that is a little far fetched. It follows a young man, in his twenties, looking for his sister that went missing 20 years before who was also in her twenties. That is a big jump for siblings. I know there is siblings out there with that big of an age gap but this is still a little hard to take.
It also skips on most of the backstory that we got in the first film. I know it’s a sequel and everyone should have known this before going into the film but it was still entertaining to hear about. We do get a little mention of the backstory along with a new tidbit that adds to the creature reveal later on in the film. I really enjoyed that angle and how the viewer finally gets to see the witch for the first time. It may not be what you would expect but we still get to see it. Now, as for the ending of the film.
The ending has an amazing look that left me speechless. I thought this would be the redeeming moment for the film but it is unable to capture the viewer’s attention. It’s not as fast paced as I would have liked and was a real wasted opportunity. In fact, the entire film moves at a snails pace with small bursts of excitement and is unable to keep the viewer focused on the story unlike the original film. The original had some great tension and atmosphere with a lot of creepy moments and jump scares but is broken up with unnecessary moments that break the hold the film has over the viewer.
Finally, those of you looking for some on screen kills will be very upset. The kills, if you want to call them that, all take place off screen. There is some blood and a great effect in the film involving puss but that is it. The creature was very well done and I loved the way they handled it. Gave us just enough to want more but not enough to ruin the vibe of the film. Some scenes were so quick I was unable to tell if it was CGI or prosthetics. Overall, Blair Witch was a let down. It had a great cast and a story I could get behind but the scenes are just way too long and repetitive. I really wanted to like the film but I found myself bored most of the time. A movie can have atmosphere and tension while not being boring but Blair Witch could not balance them out evenly. It’s worth a watch just don’t expect much.
Special Features:
None
