Imaginative And Pretty Effective

Rating: 7/10 (7 November 2009)

Although the style has become fairly common, at the time this movie was released, the idea of a simple movie filmed in a documentary style using a single hand held camera was pretty imaginative, and to give the makers of this film their proper credit, no one since has mastered the raw style as effectively. The story is a simple one. Three college students learn of a Maryland legend about the “Blair Witch” and they set out for a weekend in the woods to investigate the stories.
The film starts out in a light-hearted manner, showing the trio joking around as they prepare for their adventure, then doing some background interviews with residents of the nearby town of Burkittsville, which adds some horror-type mystery and “history” to the project. There wasn't much excitement in that opening, but it established that the three didn't take the legends seriously and that they weren't expecting much more than a weekend in the woods. At first we watch essentially a routine nature hike, but the suspense builds pretty quickly once the three realize they're lost. Then they begin to hear mysterious sounds at night and stumble upon strange things by day - unusual rock piles, and the now famous Blair Witch symbol made out of sticks and hanging from trees. The movie never tries to explain these things, focusing instead on the increasing terror felt by the campers. There's an interesting study of group dynamics as the three respond to their plight by increasingly turning on each other. The climax of the movie starts when Josh goes missing. He's nowhere to be found, but Heather and Bill hear him calling to them. Their search finally leads them unexpectedly to a crumbling old house. There's something terrifying in the house, but it's never revealed, the filming stopping suddenly when Heather comes across Bill staring at something. In the story, the three are never found, but the camera and film are found a year later.
I realize this was in keeping with the genre, but I would have liked a bit more resolution. The movie leaves you with your heart pumping but no explanation of what happened. Still, the film is effective at building suspense and presents a frighteningly creepy feel once the kids realize that they're lost, and the three do a great job of portraying their increasing fear and desperation. The college documentary project angle also shields the film from the typical, ”low budget" criticisms. Altogether, it's pretty effective. 7/10