If you go down to the woods today...

Rating: 10/10 (28 October 2003)

A real horror film is always primarily about the psychology of fear, which leaves the movie maker with one key decision: how much to show, and how much to leave only in the mind. 'The Blair Witch Project' exists as the video diaries of some self-obsessed film-makers, making a film about themselves investigating the legend of a local witch. As well as being an interesting experiment in narrative legitimacy, it also provides a novel solution to the aforementioned dilemma: we see exactly what the characters see for themselves. It's convincingly done, and truly spine-chilling. The "heroes" are annoying American brats, but as their plight deepens, one is taken with the sense that they're going to die. The result is harrowing, and more resembles the BBC's story of nuclear winter, 'Threads', than any conventional horror film. Not exactly light entertainment, but genuinely good nonetheless.