Ford W Maverick
Well-Known Member
Just posted this on IMDB and thought I'd post it here too. Enjoy!
The Blair Witch Project was ambitious, it was innovative, and it was one of the worst movies I've ever seen in my life.
Seriously, I watched the promo-special for it that they aired on the Sci-Fi Channel and I was excited because it looked like a great movie, so I watched it with optimistically and I was horribly let down.
Let that sink in. I watched what was basically an extended movie trailer that made me interested enough to watch the movie and the movie was less entertaining that the trailer.
Problem #1: In any horror/suspense movie there has to be at least one character that you care about. If you don't want to see at least one of the characters come out of the situation alive then it's just boring. The characters in Blair Witch are annoying idiots. I had more emotional attachment to the witch who *SPOILER ALERT* you never see on camera. Honestly, I couldn't wait for these idiots to die and the credits to roll.
Problem #2: Half of it was Black and White. "Why is this a problem?" you ask? "Clerks was in Black and White and it was good!" you say? Here's the thing, Black & White is ok if it either plays into the plot somehow, like it's filmed like and made to look like an old movie or if the plot of the movie lends itself to B&W or if it's the kind of movie where it just doesn't matter (like Clerks). What we have in Blair Witch is a trio of film students who apparently have the last B&W camera in existence. Seriously, when did they quit making B&W cameras? I'm pretty damn sure they don't issue them at film school. At least not any that I'd pay the tuition for.
I know it was a low budget film and I know it was a quick visual cue so you knew who's camera you were looking through, but it really pulled me out of the movie. I know, it's a petty gripe, but I'd have ignored it if I was watching a movie I was enjoying. Sadly, I was not.
Problem #3 (SPOILER): There was no Witch. Say all you want about it being like Jaws because it's scarier when you can't see the danger, but here's what proponents of this movie don't understand about Jaws: for most of the movie you don't see the shark, but then BAM! There's a giant freakin' shark! Holy crap!
The audience tease of not being able to see the monster only works well when it's leading up to eventually seeing the damn monster. Blair Witch has no payoff.
Granted, I liked the ending. Hated the movie, but I thought the ending was ok. Thing is, it could have been a GREAT ending if only we'd been given even ONE character that we could feel ANY empathy for whatsoever and if we'd gotten SOME glimpse of the witch. Even if it was just a hunched shape shuffling off in the darkness through camera static. SOMETHING.
In essence it was a long, boring time spent in the dark with people I genuinely wanted to see die, but by the time they do I was so bored that I no longer cared.
I'm so glad watching this movie didn't cost me anything more than my precious time...
The Blair Witch Project was ambitious, it was innovative, and it was one of the worst movies I've ever seen in my life.
Seriously, I watched the promo-special for it that they aired on the Sci-Fi Channel and I was excited because it looked like a great movie, so I watched it with optimistically and I was horribly let down.
Let that sink in. I watched what was basically an extended movie trailer that made me interested enough to watch the movie and the movie was less entertaining that the trailer.
Problem #1: In any horror/suspense movie there has to be at least one character that you care about. If you don't want to see at least one of the characters come out of the situation alive then it's just boring. The characters in Blair Witch are annoying idiots. I had more emotional attachment to the witch who *SPOILER ALERT* you never see on camera. Honestly, I couldn't wait for these idiots to die and the credits to roll.
Problem #2: Half of it was Black and White. "Why is this a problem?" you ask? "Clerks was in Black and White and it was good!" you say? Here's the thing, Black & White is ok if it either plays into the plot somehow, like it's filmed like and made to look like an old movie or if the plot of the movie lends itself to B&W or if it's the kind of movie where it just doesn't matter (like Clerks). What we have in Blair Witch is a trio of film students who apparently have the last B&W camera in existence. Seriously, when did they quit making B&W cameras? I'm pretty damn sure they don't issue them at film school. At least not any that I'd pay the tuition for.
I know it was a low budget film and I know it was a quick visual cue so you knew who's camera you were looking through, but it really pulled me out of the movie. I know, it's a petty gripe, but I'd have ignored it if I was watching a movie I was enjoying. Sadly, I was not.
Problem #3 (SPOILER): There was no Witch. Say all you want about it being like Jaws because it's scarier when you can't see the danger, but here's what proponents of this movie don't understand about Jaws: for most of the movie you don't see the shark, but then BAM! There's a giant freakin' shark! Holy crap!
The audience tease of not being able to see the monster only works well when it's leading up to eventually seeing the damn monster. Blair Witch has no payoff.
Granted, I liked the ending. Hated the movie, but I thought the ending was ok. Thing is, it could have been a GREAT ending if only we'd been given even ONE character that we could feel ANY empathy for whatsoever and if we'd gotten SOME glimpse of the witch. Even if it was just a hunched shape shuffling off in the darkness through camera static. SOMETHING.
In essence it was a long, boring time spent in the dark with people I genuinely wanted to see die, but by the time they do I was so bored that I no longer cared.
I'm so glad watching this movie didn't cost me anything more than my precious time...