by Frank Calvillo
For me, one of the most memorable aspect of 1999’s The Blair Witch Project was its marketing strategy, which sold the intensely realist film as a true-life documentary which culminated in a shocking, yet now infamous, conclusion. It was an ingenious way to sell a movie and I believe is the sole reason for the film doing as well as it did. In a way props must be given to director Adam Wignard and the team behind Blair Witch for slightly mirroring this method and devising a decidedly clever cloak and dagger marketing strategy, which until the last minute, had presented their film as simply another horror story with young people taking place in a wooded nowhere before finally being unveiled as a sequel to one of the most iconic horror movies of all time. Unfortunately, that’s where most of the favorable comparisons between the two films end.
In Blair Witch, film student Lisa (Callie Hernandez) has decided that for her final project, she will retrace the steps of the trio of young adults who disappeared into the woods near Maryland in 1999 while on the hunt for the mythical Blair witch. Accompanied by two friends Ashley (Corbin Reid) and Peter (Brandon Scott), a pair of unexpected tag-alongs named Lane (Wes Robinson) and Talia (Valorie Curry) as well as close friend James (James Allen McCune), the younger brother of one of the original long-lost three and every type of recording device known to man, the group makes it their mission to uncover the mystery of the woods and of the Blair witch herself.
While the original film was a game changer no one saw coming, Blair Witch has the distinct disadvantage of having to follow one of the toughest acts in horror movie history, and it shows. Rarely has there been a sequel that felt so pressured to live up to the power of its original. The biggest thing working against Blair Witch is that as much as it tries to be as cinema verite as its predecessor, particularly when it comes to the fright sequences, Hollywood scares can’t help but abound in large numbers such as a moment early on when a loud noise transitions a quiet scene in a garage to one in a nightclub. Once in the woods, things only seem to be getting worse as the script for Blair Witch seems to be clutching at cinematic straws, combining elements The Exorcist, Cloverfield and even Interstellar to no real potent effect. Even when something goes right, the film doesn’t known what to do with it, as evidenced by a mid-film twist which proves interesting but is never followed through with.
However in the land of horror sequels and reboots, enough about Blair Witch makes it stand out above the rest of the pack. First off, the film’s premise proves a decent enough plot for a sequel. Anyone familiar with the first film will surely find themselves captivated by James’s frantic search for his long-lost sister. As a matter of fact, all of the characters prove somewhat diverting in their own right, rising far and above typical horror movie conventions. Also, while some may find the film a tad slow, Blair Witch is atmospheric enough and offers a number of somewhat decent scares before amping things up in its final scenes. Taking place in an empty house as rain and thunder let loose outside, the film shows how it has the potential to be an effective horror movie in its own right.
The performances throughout are as good as to be expected for a horror film. By that I mean everyone cries on cue and the entire cast actually looks genuinely scared. Beyond that however, each cast member carries with them a kind of fear and unease, channeling the same kind dread the cast of the original infused their characters with and making themselves appear as if they genuinely believe in the power of the Blair witch which they immediately and believably sell to the audience.
It’s my belief that Blair Witch will no doubt polarize movie audiences in a similar way as the original did back in the day. While average moviegoers will surely be creeped out by the film’s numerous scares, horror aficionados will find themselves either defending it as its own entity or decrying it as a desperate rip-off of other horror classics, not least of which the original film. While there’s nothing particularly special about Blair Witch to outright recommend it, the film does serve as a somewhat admirable contribution to one of the most unpredictable horror film series in movie history.
