HOLLYWOOD—Some of you might be asking why in the world nearly 16 years later we are now getting another installment in the “The Blair Witch Project” franchise? To be honest, I don’t have an answer to that question, beyond someone thought it would be good to revisit a movie that gave birth to the found footage horror genre in my opinion.
Yes, it was back in 1999, when “The Blair Witch Project” invaded theaters and totally created such a wave of buzz about how a small film, with virtually no budget good break box-office records and earn a ton of money at the same time. The movie followed three friends who ventured into the woods and soon came into contact with a supernatural entity that the audience never really got to see.
The film’s premise has a similar sentiment to the horror flick “Friday the 13th Part IV: The Final Chapter” and that was in 1984. We have a character whose sister went missing and decides to venture out to find out precisely what happened to her; too bad things don’t turn out the way he and his friends expected.
Some of you might be questioning why the movie was shrouded in so much secrecy. Well, I recall when the trailer first arrived for this movie it was called “The Woods,” but apparently that was done to keep the truth about the latest installment in the franchise from being discovered by fans. Probably a big mistake in the marketing department if you ask me. “Blair Witch” is more like a copy and paste version of the original, “Blair Witch Project,” with new faces and its attempt at a few twists hoping to throw off the audience.
I have never been a fan of the ‘shaky camera’ aka found footage flick, as the graininess makes it difficult to actually transpire what is happening on the big screen. What’s worse, is that the payoff never adds up, which “Blair Witch” echoes just like the original. I wish the movie would have taken a few tips from the American remake of the Japanese classic “Ringu.” “The Ring” starring Naomi Watts is the perfect example of a movie that opens with a big mystery and it totally pays off at the end with a shocking twist and a big reveal that leaves the spectator in awe. For horror buffs, thinking “Blair Witch” has those elements, think again.
Who, what, where and why the ‘Blair Witch’ exists still remains a mystery for the spectator. After entertaining a franchise that certainly builds its expense to a feverish pitch, but consistently fails to deliver on the payoff proves exactly why fans chose to sit this latest chapter out, just like the horrid “Book of Shadows.”
