Anoraks Assemble

The Blair Witch Project is a 1999 horror film, written and directed by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez. It was something of a cultural phenomenon, redefining the whole ‘found footage’ genre and capitalising on a clever marketing campaign, which resulted in the film making an estimated $250 million at the box office. Without a doubt, it is the most famous ‘found footage’ film of all time.

The basic plot sees three students, Heather, Michael and Josh, hike into the Appalachian Mountains to film a documentary about a local legend known as the Blair Witch.

The first part of the film has a real documentary feel about it. We see the students interview local townspeople to hear their views of the so-called Blair Witch. It has a wonderful amateurish look (and I mean that in a good way), which lends strength to the idea that we are indeed watching a student film.

And yet, I have such mixed feelings about the finished product.

I mean, is it scary?

Well yes, there are a few incredibly tense moments. The shaking of the tent, the strange and mysterious groans through the darkened forest, and Josh’s agonised cries. And the final shot of Mike, standing in the corner of the deserted building, facing the wall, is one to haunt the viewer’s dreams.

The problem for me is, by the time we got to these moments I truly hated the characters so much I just did not care what happened to them. They are irritating beyond belief. And it is such a shame because it is a very, very clever film, highly original, and incredibly well put together.

I had not watched The Blair Witch Project for quite a few years so decided to give it another go and see if my opinion had changed any. Sadly, I still think it is a case of style over substance. I think it is an example of highly creative and very original filmmaking, but ultimately, when the characters have little to no redeeming factors, it is difficult to care about their fates.