Blair Witch

Director - Adam Wingard (You're Next)
Starring - James Allen McCune (The Walking Dead), Callie Hernandez (Machete Kills), and Corbin Reid (Disney Star Darlings)
Release Date - 2016
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "There's something evil hiding in the woods"
Format - Theatrical

Rating (out of 5):

     Last night I decided to go with some friends to watch Blair Witch.  One of my favorite memories in horror was when the original Blair Witch Project was announced.  The film would go on to inspire an entire sub-genre of horror but would be far from the first found footage film to be released.  People went crazy over the marketing for the film.  The team went above and beyond to convince people that this was an authentic found footage film and, for the most part, they would succeed.  A fairly large portion of people believed that it was real.  I have to admit that before I saw the film I was one of the few that did but I want to blame that on my youth and childlike wonder.  That only lasted a short time until I saw some of the crew on an awards show a short time after the release.  BWP is one of those films I have to be in the mood to watch or I don't appreciate it.  When I first heard that the film was getting a direct sequel I was curious how it would be handled.  Most of you know how much I love remakes and sequels but I could not figure out how someone could approach the first BWP and make a sequel.  How do you capture what the first film gave us?  The answer is simple, you cant.
     The film follows footage that was shot in 2014 and later found.  It follows a group of twenty-somethings who are searching for the missing sister of one of the young men.  She went missing in 1994 when making a documentary on the Blair Witch in Maryland.  Now he is the subject of a new documentary.  They found footage on YouTube where he believes it was his sister and meet up with the publisher of the video to show them where the footage was found.  They meet up and hike to their first camp site where they have a pretty uneventful day but that night they hear loud noises and trees crashing but nothing is ever seen.  When they awake they find insignias made out of sticks hung around their tents.  They pack up their gear and flee but soon discover that it was a hoax perpetrated by the guy that uploaded the video along with his girlfriend.  They force them to separate where the group uses GPS to get back to their cars but the GPS fails and end up back where they camped the night before.  They set up camp again and soon learn that the legend of the Blair Witch is not a hoax and anyone that stays the night in her woods never leave them again.

     I went into this film with an open mind but I was curious more than anything.  Was this film going to serve as a remake repackaged as a sequel, would it be a direct sequel to the original film or would it be a meta-sequel like Book of Shadows?  I would be lying if I didn't mention how excited I was to see this in a theater.  I would have loved to see the original film in a theater.  Sadly, the film was a bit of a let down in most aspects.  It had a some things I really liked but there was more that I did not.  The acting in this one is good.  It kept in the same tune as the first film.  The cast doesn't try to sell the scenes but carries natural conversation before they are scared shitless.  This is the way to make a found footage flick look authentic.  The cast was great but my favorite performance was from Wes Robinson.  He was bat shit insane and he only added to the atmosphere that made the ending enjoyable.  The story for this one is what left me disappointed.  The first film flows like an amateur documentary.  We get a lot of backstory and interviews on the legend of the Blair Witch for those that were not well versed in this legend.  It then takes a dark turn and pits the three filmmakers against some of the things from the legend before giving the viewer an abrupt but eerie ending.  This sequel picks up 20 years later (footage for BWP was 1994 but release in 1999 and Blair Witch footage is 2014 and released in 2016) but gives the viewer a story that is a little far fetched.  It follows a young man, in his twenties, looking for his sister that went missing 20 years before who was also in her twenties.  That is a big jump for siblings.  I know there is siblings out there with that big of an age gap but this is still a little hard to take.  It also skips on most of the backstory that we got in the first film.  I know it's a sequel and everyone should have known this before going into the film but it was still entertaining to hear about.  We do get a little mention of the backstory along with a new tidbit that adds to the creature reveal later on in the film.  I really enjoyed that angle and how the viewer finally gets to see the witch for the first time.  It may not be what you would expect but we still get to see it.  Now, as for the ending of the film.  The ending has an amazing look that left me speechless.  I thought this would be the redeeming moment for the film but it is unable to capture the viewer's attention.  It's not as fast paced as I would have liked and was a real wasted opportunity.  In fact, the entire film moves at a snails pace with small bursts of excitement and is unable to keep the viewer focused on the story unlike the original film.  The original had some great tension and atmosphere with a lot of creepy moments and jump scares but is broken up with unnecessary moments that break the hold the film has over the viewer.  Finally, those of you looking for some on screen kills will be very upset.  The kills, if you want to call them that, all take place off screen.  There is some blood and a great effect in the film involving puss but that is it.  The creature was very well done and I loved the way they handled it.  Gave us just enough to want more but not enough to ruin the vibe of the film.  Some scenes were so quick I was unable to tell if it was CGI or prosthetics.  Overall, Blair Witch was a let down.  It had a great cast and a story I could get behind but the scenes are just way too long and repetitive.  I really wanted to like the film but I found myself bored most of the time.  A movie can have atmosphere and tension while not being boring but Blair Witch could not balance them out evenly.  It's worth a watch just don't expect much.