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Review: BLAIR WITCH

Published

8 years ago

September 11, 2016

In the Summer of 1999, The Blair Witch Project hit theaters and took the world by storm. This shoe-string budgeted found footage horror movie was a critical and box-office smash that kicked off a new wave of ‘recovered’ horror movies. As a kid, I was too young to see the ‘R’ rated hike through the Black Hills myself, but, I didn’t need to when the phenomenon hit from all sides. The Blair Witch Project was a true viral marketing success, utilizing the power of the internet and word of mouth to hook audiences into what many believed was a true story.

I distinctly remember seeing the surrounding documentary, The Curse Of The Blair Witch on the Sci-Fi channel. Setting up the foundation of the surrounding legends and tales of the titular Witch. A mythos that led to several books, video games and a panned direct sequel, Book Of Shadows: Blair Witch 2. The response was enough that plans for anymore sequels were seemingly halted for good. But now, sixteen years after the last film entry in the franchise, we’re going back into the Black Hills of Maryland with the simply titled Blair Witch.

Perhaps one of the most shocking releases this year, if only because of the secrecy and delivery of this entry in the franchise. Stealthily titled The Woods initially, the project was billed as a brand new tale of terror from the director/writer duo of Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett of You’re Next, The Guest, and V/H/S fame. Only for the bombshell announcement at San Diego Comic-Con that it was in fact a continuation of the landmark film.

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Directly linked to the original, the plot follows James Donahue, younger brother to protagonist of the original, Heather Donahue. When strange footage of the house from the first movie is uploaded online, claimed to be from footage found in the Black Hills, James enlists a few of his friends to go into the woods, and see if there are any clues to his sister’s twenty two year long disappearance. Armed with modern, high tech cameras and equipment, will they be able to solve the mysteries of the Blair Witch or vanish like so many before them?

Now, there are many distinct elements and specifics to Blair Witch I feel are better left unsaid. The more blind you are before going in, the better the experience you will have, so this review will be as spoiler free as possible.

To the point; is it scary? This movie gave me nightmares, so hell yes it is scary. The key to its success were on many different fronts. For one, as opposed to Book Of Shadows, Blair Witch returned to the found footage format, but with the addition of today’s modern technology. Go-pros, drones, GPS, and more are used, and make for some unique scenes capturing the weirdness of the woods and the utter despair of the crew. Plus, easier to justify filming everything when the cameras are tiny and can be worn quite easily.

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One thing that had been often criticized with the original was the slow pacing bordering on tedious. Several friends even telling me they only made it halfway through before calling it quits! Blair Witch does not suffer from this problem. Once our wayward heroes make it into the woods, audiences will be hooked in, if only to see what will happen next. There are many homages to the famous scares of the original, from the stick figures and noises in the woods, but with plenty of content that adds to the mythos.

It will be debated whether this entry is equal, if even superior to, the original. While I won’t be discussing that today, I will say that it is leaps and bounds a satisfactory horror movie. This is by no means a “remake” or “retread”. While it may walk familiar ground, Blair Witch sprints screaming beyond anything in the mythology that came before it. And with a larger budget, Wingard and Barrett were able to create some frightening scenes that wouldn’t have been possible for TBWP, but thankfully without becoming FX reliant. The tension building is near flawless, and when it hits the breaking point, it breaks hard.

I cannot recommend this enough. Either as fans of the original, or looking for a seriously good scare this Fall, see Blair Witch, opening this Friday, September 16th!

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Movies

Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

Published

13 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.

Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.

The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.

Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”

Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

News

Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween

Published

14 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Spirit Halloween has declared that this week marks the start of spooky season and to celebrate they are offering fans a chance to stay at the Lizzie Borden House with so many perks Lizzie herself would approve.

The Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA is claimed to be one of the most haunted houses in America. Of course one lucky winner and up to 12 of their friends will find out if the rumors are true if they win the grand prize: A private stay in the notorious house.

“We are delighted to work with Spirit Halloween to roll out the red carpet and offer the public a chance to win a one-of-a-kind experience at the infamous Lizzie Borden House, which also includes additional haunted experiences and merchandise,” said Lance Zaal, President & Founder of US Ghost Adventures.

Fans can enter to win by following Spirit Halloween‘s Instagram and leaving a comment on the contest post from now through April 28.

The prize also includes:

An exclusive guided house tour, including insider insight around the murder, the trial, and commonly reported hauntings

A late-night ghost tour, complete with professional ghost-hunting gear

A private breakfast in the Borden family dining room

A ghost hunting starter kit with two pieces of Ghost Daddy Ghost Hunting Gear and a lesson for two at US Ghost Adventures Ghost Hunting Course

The ultimate Lizzie Borden gift package, featuring an official hatchet, the Lizzie Borden board game, Lily the Haunted Doll, and America’s Most Haunted Volume II

Winner’s choice of a Ghost Tour experience in Salem or a True Crime experience in Boston for two

“Our Halfway to Halloween celebration provides fans an exhilarating taste of what’s to come this fall and empowers them to start planning for their favorite season as early as they please,” said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. “We have cultivated an incredible following of enthusiasts who embody the Halloween lifestyle, and we’re thrilled to bring the fun back to life.”

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Spirit Halloween is also preparing for their retail haunted houses. On Thursday, August 1 their flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. will officially open to start off the season. That event usually draws in hordes of people eager to see what new merch, animatronics, and exclusive IP goods will be trending this year.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Movies

’28 Years Later’ Trilogy Taking Shape With Serious Star Power

Published

16 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Danny Boyle is revisiting his 28 Days Later universe with three new films. He will direct the first, 28 Years Later, with two more to follow. Deadline is reporting that sources say Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have been cast for the first entry, a sequel to the original. Details are being kept under wraps so we don’t know how or if the first original sequel 28 Weeks Later fits into the project.

**Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes**

Boyle will direct the first movie but it’s unclear which role he will take on in the subsequent films. What is known is Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta is scheduled to direct the second film in this trilogy and that the third will be filmed immediately afterward. Whether DaCosta will direct both is still unclear.

Alex Garland is writing the scripts. Garland is having a successful time at the box office right now. He wrote and directed the current action/thriller Civil War which was just knocked out of the theatrical top spot by Radio Silence’s Abigail.

There is no word yet on when, or where, 28 Years Later will start production.