Unnerving!

Rating: 8/10 (7 October 2011)

As a major fan of the horror genre I heard about The Blair Witch project and simply HAD to go and see it! Thinking of myself as a hardened horror buff I was pretty sure that I'd enjoy every second, and I did, but I was terrified! The fact that I was heavily pregnant and had to return home to an empty house as my husband was working away should have been a deterrent, but I thought I'd be fine!
My sister (who loathes horror movies with a passion) had seen Blair Witch the night before and said she was disappointed in it. She said it was over-hyped and simply not frightening. How wrong she was!
The film starts with 3 student film makers, Heather, Josh and Mike, heading to Burketsville to make a documentary about the legend of The Blair Witch. They visit various sites of interest, speak to local people and hear the story of Rustin Parr. Parr was a local man who kidnapped, tortured and murdered 7 local children in the 40's. During his trial Parr claimed that he was possessed by the spirit of Elly Kedward, a woman burnt as a witch in the town of Blair. Burketsville was formerly known as Blair.
The trio then head out into The Black Woods. They visit Coffin Rock, the site of the murder of 5 men. As the film progresses the students move further into the woods. Inevitably they become lost.
What follows still scares me to this day. As fear takes over the sensibilities of the trio they begin to fight and argue with each other. Then, when night falls, strange happenings occur. Children are heard laughing, strange objects are left outside the tents. The students slowly descend into absolute terror.
To go any further would mean including spoilers, which I always hate in a review. Needless to say the frustration of the students is passed on to the viewer. Shaky camera-work (this film being one of the first 'handheld camera' movies) only adds to the fear as we are unable to see what it is that is terrifying the students.
I watched this film on the edge of my seat. On my return home I was physically afraid to be alone. I actually ended up staying the night at my parent's house! That's not to say that everyone will be afraid, judging by some of these reviews I think I must be an absolute coward for being scared by a film that some people have claimed made them fall asleep!
But I will leave this review by saying one thing:
I went into labour the next day - 3 weeks early!