Still manages to scare me to the bones...

Rating: Null/10 (4 November 2002)

I saw this movie for the first time in the 'perfect' environment. It was on Showtime, with no commercials, and it played at night. Then, as it was very late by the time it was finished, I actually had to go to bed without seeing anything that could cheer up my subconscious. The result? A good case of insomnia where everything looked like an inky black shroud with two unblinking white eyes. Holy macrap I was scared after watching this thing. And it still manages to send shivers down my spine. If you haven't seen this yet (and if so, what is wrong with you?), the entire thing is shot with a home movie camera and centers around 3 college students who get lost in the woods and never come back. Some complain about the shaky camera, but I loved it. It seemed much more natural than any stolid Hollywood camera. And I understand how some might not like this movie, since in the end you never get a good look at the horror that is the Blair Witch and there are no special effects or fancy CGI to speak of. But as for me, I didn't need those things to have a good time. The little things that replaced the whizz-pow effects did the job: the tiny hands on the campers' tent, the hundreds of stick figures wafting in the breeze, and a bushel of teeth and a tongue. That's all the movie had to give me to sufficiently screw up my head. Maybe that is why I didn't like the sequel so much, as it actually was a Hollywood flick that resorted to graphic violence and stupid images of people eating owls (spooky, really) to shock its audience. As for the original, it gets a perfect score of 4/4. Oh, and don't bother to watch this on FX or any other TV channel if you really want to get the full effect. Commercials break up the tension every 5 minutes, and you will be disappointed. Instead, rent this, sit at home by yourself in the dark with only a blanket to protect you, and try not to get spooked.
"I'm afraid to close my eyes...I'm afraid to open them...(gasps)...what was that? Oh my God..."