Let’s talk about a truly divisive film. I think this is a film that is either loved or hated. As time goes by, it gets more and more hate. So let me be clear, if you weren’t alive when this came out, you may not get it. That doesn’t make it bad. You just weren’t around to get the full effect that this film had. Consider the effect that Jaws had on people going into the ocean, or how scary The Exorcist was. Why is it so easy to accept those films, but not this one? Like I said, very divisive.
If you don’t know the story of this film, go watch it. Heather, Josh, and Mike want to make a documentary on the Blair Witch urban legend in Burkittsville, Maryland. It starts off with plenty of interviews with the local folk, including a crazy lady. Then they go out in the woods, get lost, have some creepy shit happen at night. Of course, they find the wooden figurines and it escalates until the end.
It’s a simple story. This film gets a lot of credit and blame for the found footage subgenre, which always brings up some annoying loudmouth who wants to bring up The Last Broadcast and Cannibal Holocaust. There, I mentioned their existences, now sit down.
The film had a very real feeling, at least at the time, although you struggle to believe how dumb some people are. Still, we all know complete dumbasses in our lives, so that never felt unrealistic to me. The big reason why this was so popular and made so much money was a combination of buzz from the Sundance Film Festival and the marketing. The biggest thing was the mockumentary on SciFi Channel, “The Curse of the Blair Witch”.
I love to debate the merits of this film with people that don’t like it, but in the end, it’s all about personal taste. Fans of horror are used to suspending their disbelief, but sometimes we struggle with films that are supposed to be set in the real world. Some people just hate the camerawork or the acting. I get it. This was one of the most important films that came out that year, whether people like it or not.
For me, I love the “scary” scenes. They were well done. Trust me, I saw this in the theater 3 times, and it got reactions all three times. That is effective. The house at the end is by far my favorite part of this film. To add to that, this is the rare horror film that constantly builds up to a great final scene that doesn’t disappoint.
Rating: 7.2 – That rating is for the enjoyment I have received over the years from this film. The rating is also for the historical significance, and what it did for horror. I know found footage movies are mostly garbage. Some have been good. It’s no different than any other genre. Not every comedy is funny, not every war movie is great, not every epic feels very epic, Star Wars Episode II happened, alright. With the good comes the bad. I loved Cloverfield, The Taking of Deborah Logan, Grave Encounters, Creep, The Den, Chronicle, Lake Mungo, Home Movie, V/H/S, The Last Exorcism, Quarantine/Rec, and Trollhunter, among many others. You may not like all of those films, but if I love horror, I imagine you have enjoyed some of those. You may even like Paranormal Activity and all of its shenanigans.
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