The dark side of the film industry

Rating: 1/10 (29 July 2002)

The Blair Witch Project is a crude, vulgar attempt to capitalize on Generation X's fascination with itself. Completely devoid of content and purpose, this is the film to watch when you have no stereotypically shallow teenagers around to swear at you and talk about getting drunk or stoned. It will fill that void for 90 minutes, while subtly creating a greater void in your appreciation of art that may haunt you for the rest of your life. Yes, this film terrified me, but not because it was a frightening horror film. It is an archetypical example of big business (in this case Artisan Entertainment) manufacturing social reality for profit. And that is truly terrifying.
I can only recommend The Blair Witch Project to psychologists and others who study the manufacture of social reality (research Artisan's marketing campaign first or you'll likely find the film itself excruciatingly tedious). In this regard alone does The Blair Witch Project offer any significance. May it quickly be forgotten, and may big business and government never learn the lessons it teaches.