REVIEW OF THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT

The Blair Witch Project

 

The Blair Witch Project is about how three students decide to go into the Maryland woods to try and uncover the mystery behind the Blair Witch. However, their trip lasts way longer than they expected when they lose their map and things take an unexpected turn for the worse. The film came out in 1999 and was the seen as terrifying as it was the first successful documentary- style horror movie, it terrified audiences as people were unsure whether it was actually fiction or not.  It was a film that had you engaged from the very beginning and left you shaken and scared at the end. It left the mark that you wouldn’t want to go in the woods alone at night. 

 

Having watched so many horror films because of media a level I’ve got used to the idea of being scared in different ways whether it be psychological or physical (in a jump scare) however, I’ve not seen a film like the Blair Witch Project before. It felt so realistic and true that it was impossible not to be scared. The fact it was filmed mainly on a camcorder and that it felt the actors were filming themselves and not being filmed helped reinforce the idea about how isolated they were. Although it doesn’t particularly give lots away in terms of images of the Blair Witch, it’s a film what relies a lot on your imagination which is far worse, people’s ideas will be different and scary to them, thus making it scary to everyone. 

 

One of the reasons we will never have a Blair Witch Project again is because we’ll never have an early internet again. Going viral was difficult in 1999 as people barley had any broadband and social media wasn’t really a thing but it was also a time when people actually believed what they read on the internet hence why people the Blair Witch Project when it came out. If they tried to make the same kind of film now it would be a lot harder as we have technology now so would be able to call someone if lost in the woods, their lack of technology in the film helps show how cut off they were from the rest of the world making it scarier. The Blair Witch Project wasn’t the first found- footage film it just helped bring it into light because of how successful it was. It made people realise that a film didn’t need to have jump scares in it for it to scare them. 

 

I would defiantly say this is one of the best horror films that I’ve ever seen, I’ve not seen anything like it. I would definitely advise watching it if you’re down for a good scare!

 

I chose to review this film as it helped get a deeper understanding of the different types of horror films and the effect that different ones can have. This has been useful and will help Millie and I with our coursework as it helps us decide what type of horror we would like to do whether it be psychological for example. This was a very good insight into another type of horror film as it reminds you that all horror films apply to certain codes and conventions but they all have certain things that makes them unique and that's what I found with the Blair witch project. Therefore I will be talking to Millie about what we can do to make ours differ from every other horror film.