Suspensful, but not truly scary

Rating: Null/10 (3 August 1999)

One has to admire the inventiveness -- and the box office success -- of this tidy little horror film, but do NOT see this mini-opus expecting to see the "scariest movie of all time." The movie is suspenseful, yes. Chilling, undoubtedly. But there's not one true "scream" moment in the entire movie. You know, like when the shark's head first pops up behind Roy Scheider in "JAWS." Or when Sissy Spacek's hand explodes out of her grave to grab Amy Irving in "CARRIE." Or even when Linda Blair first vomits on Jason Miller in "THE EXORCIST." Now THOSE were classic moments of terror. "BLAIR WITCH" is far more subtle and than that -- and as a result significantly less effective on a purely visceral level.