It Holds Up Just Enough

Rating: 6/10 (10 June 2019)

Ever since its release 20 years ago, The Blair Witch Project has made history as a cultural horror phenomenon, mainly for how it utilized the found footage genre without showing much of what the real horror is. While it did divide audiences back in the day, the intrigue of the film lies a lot more in what we hear rather than what is actually causing hysteria. It's a testament to how divisive the film is when even though what was videotaped did actually happen in real life, just the thought of what lies out in the middle of nowhere is enough to make one feel at ease.
Now understandably, the film has a very simplistic plot, in which three young filmmakers named Heather Donahue, Michael Williams and Joshua Leonard seek out the local legend called the Blair Witch infamously located at the Black Hills near Burkittsville, Maryland in 1994, but they all disappear and the film plays out as a feature length collection of raw footage based on what they experienced. Admittedly, the film doesn't have a great start, as the leads come off as more annoying and obnoxious than likable and charming, and not much happens besides them goofing off for the first twenty minutes. However, as the film progresses, strange oddities start to occur and slowly heighten the stakes with every passing day. The very idea of being lost in the deep woods can really affect someone mentally, so even without the supernatural aspects, the movie works well in playing with the viewer's expectations with suspenseful tension.
One major problem with most found footage movies is that the creatures feared by the cast are either always seen or are in a typical environment we're all familiar with. The better way to create paranoia within your horror narrative is by placing your characters somewhere they've never been before. Also, the decision to have many of the night scenes be pitch black and out of focus really helps the soundtrack, as all the crazy sounds coming from the area feel all the more terrifying without knowing where they are coming from. What people hear is more reactionary than what they see, and the filmmakers react so well to what they hear that the audience could be in their shoes as well. Even then, as the film goes on, Heather, Mike and Josh become much more relatable with their ever-growing impatience and frustrations with the whole legend itself, whether it's fake or not, and even towards each other with anger and fear. The more away from civilization you are, the less human you become.
So while it may be slow paced and the idea of not seeing the real terror can be a turnoff to some viewers, I definitely think The Blair Witch Project stands well on its own after its original release. Regardless if this whole movie is complete fiction, crafting a whole narrative around the supernatural in a place as unknown as a forest at night can work if you center it around the idea of implication rather than flat out showing the creature. All you need is a shoestring budget, a cast of people you know personally as opposed to famous celebrities, and an environment you're familiar with enough to let your small camera create practically everything. In spite of the found footage genre being somewhat of a joke nowadays, there is nothing stopping you from taking on the challenge of forming a film around raw recorded material.