Groundbreaking...in a sense

Rating: 9/10 (11 December 2008)

I was 16 when the Blair Witch Project came out on the big screen. At this time, it was the talk of the over-populated high school I attended. So one Friday night, I asked my girlfriend if she wanted to see it, she tentatively agreed. Once in our seats, many people around us were laughing and joking about the story, and what to expect.
A man came in from the side door, and put both of his arms in the air in an attempt to quiet the young audience. He was an employee of the cinema and he began to speak with an incredible tone of seriousness.
"Everyone please keep all of you're talking to a minimum, and please silence your pagers(cell phones weren't owned by many at this point). He said. "This is a true story of these three young adults, and of how they lost their lives in a very tragic way." With that, he exited.
The hecklers were reduced to a minority, and it seemed as if no one spoke for quite some time. There was an uneasiness in the air that both myself and my girlfriend felt. Suddenly she leaned over and whispered in my ear.
"Come on let's go see something else..." Before she could even finish her sentence, the lights died down, and the story began. We sat, glued to our seats, as it unfolded in such a way that you could barely tear your eyes away, and if you did, you were fearful that you would miss something vital.
At this point, I was totally convinced that what I was witnessing was real. There was no room in my mind for doubt or logic, and the employee that spoke up in the beginning took care of that.
The Blair Witch Project concluded, and I could never be more content with a movie after the first viewing. Normally I would focus on flaws, continuity, and the ever so popular question, "Why didn't they just..." At 16 years old, I had found the first movie that scared the hell out of me. A decade later, it still makes me uneasy.