The Blair Witch Project (Icon Ent) (1998)

This review is sponsored by

BUY IT

General		Extras
Category	Horror	Menu Animation & Audio Featurette-Curse Of The Blair Witch Featurette-Newly Discovered Footage-Theories Of The Blair Witch Notes-The Blair Witch Legacy Biographies-Cast & Crew Production Notes Theatrical Trailer-1.78:1 (Non 16x9), Dolby Digital 2.0 surround Teaser Trailer-2, both non-16x9, Dolby Digital 2.0 surround Audio Commentary-Directors & Producers
Rating
Year Of Production	1998
Running Time	77:38 (Case: 90)
RSDL / Flipper	RSDL	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	2,4	Directed By	Daniel Myrick Eduardo Sanchez
Studio Distributor	Icon Entertainment	Starring	Heather Donahue Michael Williams Joshua Leonard
Case	Amaray-Transparent
RPI	$34.95	Music	Antonio Cora

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	Full Frame	English Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s) English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 mono (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	None
16x9 Enhancement	No
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.33:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	None	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

“I am so scared! I don't know what's out there”

     Heather (Heather Donahue) with companions Josh (Joshua Leonard) and Mike (Michael Williams) arrive in the sleepy Maryland (USA) town of Burkittsville (formerly known as Blair) to investigate the legend of the “Blair witch”. Armed with a colour camcorder and 16mm black and white camera the trio are prepared to camp for a few nights in the surrounding forest after interviewing some townsfolk. It seems that many locals know something about the old legends which includes missing children and murders at “Coffin Rock” however no one seems overly concerned. Heather, Josh and Mike see this project as an adventure and nothing in the town seems to forebode the events to follow.

     The cheerful mood changes for the worse when the group begins their trek and the bleak, cold forest dampens their enthusiasm. Things then start going wrong with map difficulties and the trio trekking around in circles – apparently lost. Ominous signs also start appearing – a dead mouse, hanging stick figures, strange noises in the night, and arranged twig and rock bundles. Perhaps they are the subject of a practical joke arranged by locals? Perhaps not. The previous banter involving witches, child murders and the like now isn’t so amusing and fear begins to affect the group personalities. Heather tries to remain cheerful but the attempt is clearly forced and eventually breaks down when Josh disappears one night. From there events rapidly disintegrate culminating in a chilling, tearful, face-to-camera apology and unspecified conclusion.

     Made on a shoe-string budget between 1997 and 1998, and presented in a documentary format using footage from hand held cameras, The Blair Witch Project intentionally blurred the distinction between fiction and reality. The subsequent viral marketing campaign dwarfed the actual filming budget and was so successful that many believed it was a real event. Use of improvisation techniques during filming lent a more authentic feel to proceedings as often the actors did not know what was going to happen next. Enhancing the impression of reality was the boot-camp environment imposed on the actors by directors Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez where food and sleep were rationed. It is easy to imagine how these disorientating techniques helped focus the actors in their portrayal of increasing confusion and desperation.

     Acting overall from this trio of unknowns is excellent with Heather especially impressive as the group leader. Production standards although limited were remarkably effective in drawing viewers into the story and the descent into fear. With no CGI special effects, monsters or blood-letting the cinematography relies on the broody Maryland woods and unseen dangers to build tension. What is really impressive is the controlled way in which the three actors go from jokingly calm and measured, to nervous, then argumentative, to desperate, and finally to outright screaming panic. Although at no stage was I really “jump in the seat” scared throughout the movie, the atmosphere was distinctly unsettling with the ending a most effective portrayal of despair and doom.

     The Blair Witch Project is a movie phenomenon where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. The film itself polarised both viewers and critics alike with some proclaiming it a masterpiece, and others a pile of over-hyped rubbish. My opinion rests towards the upper end of the scale with a real appreciation of what the film makers tried to portray and the success that they enjoyed. What makes this film memorable is its departure from gore-fest franchises such as Scream or Saw, and a return to the imagined things that used to scare us as kids – and probably still scare us as adults.

Video

     As you might expect the video quality is adequate for the content being presented and the premise on which it was being filmed. Footage is mixed between colour and black and white depending on whose camera film is being shown at the time. Fortunately the overall video quality is free from any unintentional video artefacts with good blacks and accurate, albeit muted, colours. Because the video is presented as amateur footage any ratings on video attributes are weighted towards an accurate depiction of what should be expected. In this respect the Blair Witch project succeeds admirably.

     The transfer is presented in 1.33:1 aspect ratio and is not 16x9 enhanced. The picture detail was sharp enough throughout with even night vision shots being clearly defined. There was significant grain throughout. Macro blocking was not evident. There were no film artefacts observed. The opening and closing credits displayed significant telecine wobble.

     This is a dual layer disc but I could not detect the layer change using my equipment.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The default audio track is Dolby Digital 2.0 at 192Kb/s. Similar to the video the audio is low-budget but adequate. A surround mix would have been nice but not in keeping with the film premise. There were no unintentional flaws in the audio offering. This should basically be considered a dialogue driven mono track however applying surround processing did bring out some directional effects that I felt helped set the mood.

     Vocals were clear at all times and there were no problems with audio and video synchronisation. Surround channels were not used in the audio mix although Dolby surround processing did add some nuances to the rear soundstage. My subwoofer had the night off.

     The audio track included here was appropriate for the material being presented.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

     The menu featured looping audio with a nicely presented selection screen which is animated for the special features.

Directors and Producers Commentary

     Dolby Digital 2.0 at 192Kb/s. Entertaining commentary from the directors and producers providing quite a few snippets of behind the scenes “goings-on” as well as production information. This commentary is better than average and well worth a listen.

“Curse of the Blair Witch” (43:52)

    1.33:1 video aspect with Dolby Digital 2.0 audio at 192 Kb/s. A highly interesting made for TV fictionalised “documentary” using the same style as the movie itself and referring to events portrayed in the movie as if they were real. This includes interviews with the filmmaker’s friends and serves as a teaser for the movie itself. Highly recommended.

Newly Discovered Footage (5:08)

     1.33:1 video aspect with Dolby Digital 2.0 audio at 192 Kb/s. Interesting adjunct to the movie proper but doesn’t really add anything of importance.

The Blair Witch Legacy

     1.33:1 video aspect. Text slide-show giving a time-line of events associated with the Blair Witch legend up to discovery of the filmmakers’ camera footage.

Biographies

     1.33:1 video aspect. Text slide-show of biographies for Heather, Josh, Michael and the producers and directors.

Notes

     1.33:1 video aspect. Text slide-show of production notes and background information including filming techniques.

Trailer (0:51)

     Letterboxed 1.33:1 video aspect. Dolby Digital 2.0 audio at 192 Kb/s.

Teaser 1 (0:29)

     1.33:1 video aspect. Dolby Digital 2.0 audio at 192 Kb/s.

Teaser 2 (0:42)

     Letterboxed 1.33:1 video aspect. Dolby Digital 2.0 audio at 192 Kb/s.

     The Region 1 release includes DVD ROM features, exclusive web site access to the map, excerpts from the dossier and from the comic book. It misses out on the Blair Witch Legacy, Biographies, and Notes. I’d call it a draw apart from the PAL v NTSC format.

     Blair Witch Project succeeds in tapping into our instinctive fears of the unknown, of dark windblown forests, of noises in the night, and unseen monsters. By successfully blurring reality and invention with improvised acting, documentary style narration, and semi-historical references Blair Witch has become a landmark horror film which others have sought to emulate – with varying success.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall