Blair Witch Project, The (1999)
**** (out of 4)
The story is known by everyone as three filmmakers go into the wood to tell the story of the Blair Witch and soon they find themselves lost with something apparently coming for them. I remember the hype surrounding this film quite well and I remember my two viewings in the theater when the film originally opened. It's been about six years or more since I last watched the film so I was very curious going in as to how the film would hold up. After viewing the film I think it still holds up remarkably well and even though the hype has died down and much hates has been thrown upon the film, it still remains a rather chilling and all too realistic venture into basic fears. I think these basic fears can be the dark, being lost or hearing something when you shouldn't be hearing anything. These are three elements that make this film so effective because there isn't any blood, no monster, no killer and whatever is out there is something we never see. I think the greatness of the film, and something very important, is that the viewer is put into the action to where you can feel everything that the three filmmakers are going through. If you can imagine yourself lost in the woods then you should be able to know the fears going on with the filmmakers here. The movie does a marvelous job at various things but one is the start of the thing when we learn the history of the curse through the documentary set up. A perfect move. We hear from locals, various myths and then we slowly get put into the action. The set up wasn't original as the "lost video footage" was used in CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST nearly twenty years earlier but the effectiveness of this film is that it takes that lost footage and uses it again the viewer to assault their fears. The performances are all very raw but that makes them effective in terms of everything going on. The direction and use of two cameras is also very effective but the most chilling aspect of the film is without a doubt its ending. I won't spoil anything but the final shot before the hit still send chills down my spine no matter how many times I've seen the film. Over the years this film has found many critics to hate on it but this is something that happens with countless popular horror films, which is a real shame. In a day and age where we can see anything, it's refreshing to watch a movie like this that shows us absolutely nothing yet works on every level.
