Rare gem unspoiled by weak ending

Rating: 10/10 (2 August 1999)

[Editor's note: this comment contains a minor SPOILER]
It seems to me that horror films have evolved over the past 20 years to the point where the writers are forced to rely on pretty superstars running from a masked villain and directors are required to have buckets upon buckets of fake blood and intestines on standby.
All in favour of a change, raise your hands.
I thought so.
"The Blair Witch Project" is an oasis in a desert of pathetic, half-thought out chop-slop flicks and is destined to stand out among such greats as dePalma's "Carrie" and Friedkin's "The Exorcist". The reason I say this is simple: Nothing like this has been done within recent memory. The concept itself is so unique that the directors very well could have let the concept "coast" the film along, but instead they chose to make it a character study and it paid off.
What really made this film great was the sense of impending doom that slowly crushes the spirits of the three characters. Several scenes in the film such as the scene in the abandoned house and the discovery of a certain item hidden within a bundle of twigs are sure to go down in cinematic history.
My only problem with "The Blair Witch Project" was the ending, which seemed to be rather "tacked on" and personally speaking not all that scary. However, the rest of the film does not pale because of it, and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys getting the bejesus scared out of them.
10/10
Nathan Taylor