Worth The Wait!!

Rating: 9/10 (19 July 1999)

I first heard about this movie shortly after the Sundance film festival. It sounded intriguing and horribly frightening. Boy, was it ever. I have never heard of such a movie before. An entire film made up of "lost" footage shot by a camera crew making a documentary about a local legend. The only draw back is that this movie was shot mostly in first person perspective and the camera was constantly in motion. I was literally seasick by the end of the film. It was a small price to pay to see such an original and emotional movie. It was obvious that there was very little scripting done for the actors. The dialogue is so real that "lines" are dropped and words are occasionally slurred. I wouldn't be at all surprised if this entire film was done on the first take. This was a very short and effective route to a new level of realism. I did a great deal of research concerning this movie before it even hit theaters (I had been looking forward to seeing it since early this year) and was curious as to how the directors could possible end such a film. Although I won't spoil it for you I can tell you that the last 15 seconds of the Blair Witch Project will likely haunt you for many nights to come. This is a genuinely scary movie. It accomplishes this without gore or cheap shocks. The camera never actually shows the audience the danger the three characters are facing but it is a powerful presence that hides just off camera in every shot.