The Blair Witch Project

Almost forgot I had re-watched this film. This is big for me, because there are very few movies that I will watch more than once. The Blair Witch Project, however, holds some nostalgia for me, and is one film that I really believe was groundbreaking on a few levels.

I first saw it right when it came out, in the summer of 1999. I was back in the country for a brief vacation, so I had missed nearly all the hype surrounding the film's release. I was in Maine visiting relatives, and my cousin suggested we go see it. I agreed, and since she was 14 at the time, we did the old switcharoo to sneak her into an R-rated flick (they were actually checking ticket stubs. which was weird).

Knowing absolutely nothing about the film, I was pretty impressed. I may have actually believed it was a real 'documentary' up until a certain point in the movie. Overall, I thought handheld camera style and erratic editing was very effective (this was before all the reality shows and whatnot, so it was quite original at the time...) and scary as hell. Using the unknown to evoke fear was brilliant, and really packed a punch.

Psychologically, I was freaked out. My family lived in a remote house out in the woods, and coming home after seeing that flick, I had a hell of a time falling asleep! I was so taken with the movie, that when I got back down to Caracas, I raved about it to all my friends down there. It came to theaters in Venezuela a few months later, and I dragged everyone to see it, insisting they would be blown away. To my chagrin, most of my friends thought it sucked and were unimpressed. In hindsight, I think all the hype and buildup about the movie prepared people for the final product. I first saw it with no preconceived notions, had no idea what it was about or what the plot entailed. Perhaps if I had waited like my friends did, then maybe I would have had the same reaction. 

Anyway, seeing it again was a nice trip back in time. My wife actually watched the last half with me, and she hates scary films. The freaky parts were still freaky, and I think she may have actually liked it. You have to give credit to a modern horror flick that has no monster, no blood or gore, no contrived 'scary' situations like being chased by a ghost through a cellar or something...just the filmmakers fucking with your head.