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Blair witch6/22/2023 ![]() ![]() The big question begged by “Blair Witch” is whether it marks the beginning of a franchise or the end of the found footage genre. More importantly, he’s done everything imaginable to hold true to the spirit of Eduardo Sanchez and Daniel Myrick’s creation which also frames “Blair Witch” as much like a reboot as it does a sequel. Wingard has gone about his sequel in a completely opposite fashion: Making it under a veil of secrecy and nearly two decades after the original debuted. Now, even with a $5 million budget, fans may wonder why the character’s wild hair doesn’t block their ear-mounted cameras or how anyone was able to find all the footage when it was scattered far and wide around the woods.Ĭompared to the ill-fated “Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2” - the first follow-up which was rushed to market for financial reasons - this new iteration still comes across as downright inspiring. Audiences are too aware of how these films are made to buy in as completely as before, and that can distract from the story even when the formal elements are hard to fault.įilmmaking should be admired, but when you’re mimicking amateurs, where do you draw the line in terms of production value? Viewers didn’t have similar concerns with the original because it was made on the cheap. READ MORE: ‘Blair Witch’: How Filmmakers Were Able To Keep The Sequel Under Wraps For 3 YearsĪnd that may be part of the problem with “Blair Witch.” What felt fresh when “Project” started the genre oh so many “Paranormal Activities” ago now feels ready to be picked apart. Even though the sound design stands out because it’s so, so very good (a staple of Wingard’s films), it’s also impossible to believe the audio came in so, so very clean. Even one of the characters snaps, “Stop doing that!” after a particularly unjustified shock. Wingard continues to lightly add humor as a means to lull his audience into a false sense of security - setting them up to make the second half’s dramatic shift hit even harder - but its his tendency to go for the easy starts (paired with a heightened audio burst) that quickly wears thin. Paired with a sound design that emphasizes sudden noises above all else, jump scares abound throughout the sporadically funny first half. Like in the original, Wingard and cinematographer Robby Baumgartner knowingly violate sight lines to make audiences as disoriented as the lost campers. While it feels like these filmmakers know they’re treading on well-worn territory, this part’s still a stretch, even if Wingard aptly modernizes the chosen cameras.ĭrones, hands-free recorders and more easily available filmmaking equipment are implemented, and the visual flow of the film is fast, justifiably jumbled and carefully cut together. READ MORE: ‘The Woods’: Fans Freak Out As Horror Film Revealed To Be A Surprise Sequel To ‘Blair Witch’Ĭonfidant and succinct, the preamble should remind viewers of “Paranormal Activity,” “Cloverfield” or any number of found footage films released post-“Blair Witch,” all of which hastily explain just how this footage could eventually be found. The Next Big Move for Paramount+ with Showtime? Maybe Starz But rather than spend time preparing for the hike or packing extra supplies, the found filmmakers introduce the audience to an array of cameras, all of which are carefully placed to provide maximum, uninterrupted coverage of…whatever comes next. ![]() Driven to the woods for answers, the group also aims to make a documentary on their friend’s eerie journey. Starting in the very (scary) house we left off in - a fact given away in the trailer - Wingard and Barrett introduce us to four fresh faces, one of which holds close ties to a victim from the original. And the slow-build fright fest will please genre purists - perhaps enough to reinvigorate the potential franchise - even if it feels all too familiar to the rest of us. Helmed by Adam Wingard (“You’re Next,” “The Guest”) and written by his regular collaborator Simon Barrett, “Blair Witch” is shot, constructed and executed just like the original. It’s been 17 years since “The Blair Witch Project” changed the horror genre and independent filmmaking forever, and yet the new surprise sequel, “Blair Witch” (formerly known as “ The Woods”) is hoping you’ve forgotten - at least a little bit.
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