31 Movies for Halloween: The Blair Witch Project

Hi everybody!  Every time I write that I can’t help but think of Dr. Nick from “The Simpson’s” saying that line.  Anyway, welcome back to “31 Movies for Halloween” where I talk about a movie each day that gets me in the Halloween mood and today is the final day!  It’s a mixed bag of horror, thrillers and some comedies.  For those just tuning in or if you missed out on yesterday’s movie, I talked about “Old Boy” which is a South Korean film about revenge and it’s consequences.  Today, for the final movie of this series, I bring you an indie film that, until “Paranormal Activity” came along last year created a box office frenzy.  Let’s explore, shall we?

The Movie: The Blair Witch Project
Released: July 30^th, 1999
Directed by: Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez
MPAA Rating: R

The Main Players:
Joshua Leonard as Joshua Leonard
Heather Donahue as Heather Donahue
Michael C. Williams as (bet you can’t guess) Michael William

The Synopsis:
Three film students: Check
Cameras to document and shoot movie: Check
Getting lost in the woods under strange circumstances only to have your footage show up a year later even though you’re still missing: Check

Why I like this movie:
This is the little indie film that could.  This movie was made on a shoestring budget and ended up making boatloads of dough.  I remember when this came out when I was at the Univ. of Vermont for school.  It took me two weeks to get tickets because it was that sold out.  When I finally arrived at the theater, the lines wrapped around the block and I have never seen anything like it until “Paranormal Activity” was released.  Partly due to this film’s success was the ingenious marketing ploy of putting up missing posters and a website dedicated to help for the search of the three film makers.  Word of mouth spread like wildfire.  Business speak aside, this was my first exposure to Cinéma vérité where the film is shot using naturalistic techniques as would be found in a documentary.  Yeah the shaky camera did get to me a little bit, but I was one of the few that survived the nauseating jumpiness of the scenes.  What I loved about this movie first off was everything that went into it; from the way it was marketed to the story. 

The film was raw and intense, but what got to me was what you couldn’t see.  There are scenes where the three students are in their tent, but you can’t see anything.  It was pitch black in the theater during these parts.  It was just the eerie sounds from the woods that could be heard that gave me chills as my imagination was running wild.  Then there’s the very last frame of the film that sent me over the edge.  It was just burned into my brain and when I got back to my apartment, I fell asleep with the lights on.  That’s how unnerving “The Blair Witch Project” was for me.  I still do that whenever I watch this film; just kidding.  When I do watch it, I’m just in awe with how simply made the movie was and it’s just pure story.  It just goes to show how far an indie film can go.

I would recommend “The Blair Witch Project” for your Halloween movies as it combines a ghost story and an ill fated journey that unravels before your eyes.  It does have a creepy atmosphere which is perfect for these fall days.

For some good ghost stories, here are some honorable mentions:
Poltergeist, White Noise, Paranormal Activity

That wraps things up for today and as usual, I hope these suggestions help you out.  I’ll see everyone tomorrow.  Happy Halloween!