Rating: 
Summary: A cinematic litmus test
Review: My nearest and dearest may have suspected this for some time, but I'll own up to it in writing here: I use movies and peoples' opinons of them to draw quick character sketches of said people and, in extreme cases, to decide whether or not I even like them. I use The Blair Witch Project in a very specific application: whether or not somebody liked, loved or was frightened by this film gives me a good idea of whether or not that person possesses any imagination at all. If you begin watching this film with the expectation that it will figuratively take you by the hand and lead you step-by-step through a house of horrors, your experience with this film will surely disappoint you. That's not the way this one works.Many people - at least those with active imaginations - understand that the fear of the unknown we can summon in ourselves exceeds the fear generated by that which we can see. Yes, you're going to have to do a little mental work if you want to extract all the psychological terror you can from this movie. The film doesn't portray anything in graphic detail but if you'll put forth a bit of effort, TBWP will give you more than enough tools to frighten the bejesus out of yourself. You will succeed in doing so if you have sufficient imagination to conjure the images of horror that the film will not spoon-feed to you. No, this film is not for everyone. If you want to see a movie that doesn't require you to think, that spells everything out for you in big, bold and obvious letters, I strongly suggest that you don't waste your time here. But if you're willing to allow this film to actively engage your mind and to mentally supply what the film doesn't give you visually, I think you'll find this a very rewarding experience.
Rating: 
Summary: An Overhyped, Overrated "Horror" Film
Review: It's pretty obvious from the previous reviews that the "Blair Witch Project" is one of those love-it-or-hate-it films. Well, I'm sorry to say that I'm definitely in the "hate it" category. The reason that I'm sorry is that this film DOES have a good idea - to make a mock "documentary" of the disappearance of three college students under mysterious and frightening circumstances in the woods of Maryland. Unfortunately, the film never even comes close to living up to its' promise. I'm not going to go over the plot, as many reviewers have already done so, but I would like to point out the film's weaknesses: First, the acting. Yes, I know that the film was made on a bare-bones budget, but that's still no excuse for just how annoying these three people were. It's hard to feel any sympathy for these characters - the plight that they're in, the terror that they're feeling - when all they do is curse, argue, whine, and make incredibly stupid decisions (such as throwing away their only map, for no apparent reason). (The great humor columnist Dave Barry lampooned this film in a mock "review", in which he pointed out that the three students spent so much time arguing and whining that they only walked about 75 yards in any direction in the entire movie, and that if they had just worked together they probably could have survived). Instead of being scared WITH these characters (the hallmark of a good horror film) I instead became so frustrated with them that I was almost pulling for the witch by the end of the movie. Second, some reviewers who have defended this film claim that you have to be a "smart, intellectual" person to enjoy it, because since it doesn't have fancy special effects it requires you to "use your imagination" to see what's not shown. Please! I consider myself to be reasonably intelligent and I have seen several horror films with few special effects, but which were still excellent. A good example is "The Haunting" (the original, not the horrible remake a few years ago). The original "Haunting" only used sound effects and other items, yet it was truly scary, because you CARED for the characters who were trapped in the house and because the director made excellent use of odd camera angles, sound effects, etc. to increase the tension. However, "Blair Witch" has none of this - the only creepy scenes are the children's voices as they approach the tent, and the voice of one of the trio who has vanished as he yells at them from the woods at night. Otherwise, these three idiots run from piles of rocks, stick figures hanging from trees, and inspire no sympathy whatsoever. As for having an "imagination", there's so little to inspire your imagination (or get you scared) that you have to "imagine" the entire movie (plot, drama, etc.) for yourself, and I could have done that at home for free. Horror movies are supposed to encourage your imagination, not force you to think up the entire movie for yourself. I will say this, however, the real geniuses in this film are the publicists who created the incredible hype out of nothing. The fact that many people believed that this film was based on a "real" story for weeks is a tribute to the creative skills of the movie's advertisers. Maybe they should also have directed and produced "Blair Witch" - it certainly couldn't have been any worse! If you want to see a truly well-made and entertaining "Blair Witch" product, then see the Sci-Fi Channel's "mockumentary" called "Curse of the Blair Witch" - it's ten times better than the film it was intended to promote.
Rating:
Summary: This Project Gets a Failing Grade
Review: This movie had an incredible amount of hype. When people started comparing it to The Exorcist, I knew I had to see it. I'm used to folks in horror movies acting irrationally. I know they'll make the wrong decisions; it's just part of the genere. And I'm completely capable of losing myself in a movie. But these three idiots wandering around in the woods, in circles, without a map? And they can't make it out in three or four whole days? You've got to be kidding me. I couldn't help but be annoyed with the whiny, moody female lead, and be frustrated with her bumbling side-kicks. I was frightened. I was frightened that people so stupid really do exist in our world and that, as they wander lost in a huge broad circle, they'll eventually cross my path.
Rating:
Summary: The Bland Witch Project
Review: This movie is more a snooze-fest than a scream-fest. A good 77 minutes of the movie is just meandering drivel, as most documentaries made by teenagers are. I see what the filmmakers try to do in this part, which is to build suspense, but that won't work if there are annoying, foul-mouthed teens in the way. By the time the movie finally becomes a REAL horror flick in the last 10 minutes, you'll either have given up on the movie, fell asleep, or got too bored to notice. All the hype about this movie is built up on the last 10 minutes, so for those of you who haven't seen it, just go straight to the end. Trust me, you won't be missing anything. Otherwise, just have a friend sneak up on you and yell "Boo!" and you'll probably save money.
Rating:
Summary: Scary, Funny, Horrifying...
Review: This movie is SO SCARY, but don't worry. There are no torn up bodies, stabbings, beatings, or impalements. The fear factor is all in your mind's interpretation of what you see. In many scenes, our three heros are at a lit tent surrounded by darkness. This lets our imaginations run wild. What can be out there? We'll never know. The movie starts off by making us feel like we're gonna watch a routine walk in the woods, but that couldn't be farther from the truth. Their walking route takes them around in circles, the hike seems to take forever, they loose the map, they hear strange sounds each night, they find little packages left outside their tent made of sticks and rocks, and these things push them all to the edge. The conclusion is horrifying, because we as viewers almost feel as they do, completely disoriented. When we don't know what we're doing, and a witch is after us, we loose our grip. Combine that with an interesting plot twist, and you'll walk away completely shaken. ...
Rating:
Summary: Bore Witch Project (I can't do a good title so here's a pun)
Review: According to this movie, there is no fear like fear of the unknown. This is true in real life, but not in movies. If you don't remotely know what is happening in a movie, you don't experience ultimate fear -- you get BORED. That's the problem with this movie - nothing happens in it. Nothing at all. It starts out with some "interviews" with local people about the Blair Witch. We learn that the Blair Witch used to be the Burkittsville Witch. This is ALL we learn in this approximately three hour period. Then Heather Donahue, Michael Williams, and Josh Leonard decide to wander around aimlessly in the forest, and immedietly get lost. They lose their map, swear a lot, and discover that one member of their group has erratic body hair. Then, one morning, as Heather exits their tent, she realizes that something is moving in a nearby bush. She moves closer, only to see that it is a small pile of rocks! But this small pile of rocks is angry, and it has a chainsaw! Heather runs away screaming into the woods, but the small pile of rocks chases after her, and Heather eventually (according to the laws of horror movies) trips on a tree branch, is inexplicably unable to get up, and is hacked to bits by the angry rock pile's chainsaw. I'm kidding. Having a pile of rocks attack someone with a chainsaw would be out of place in The Blair Witch Project, because it was the intent of the creative minds behind it to make a movie where literally nothing happens, and some rocks armed with a chainsaw constitutes "something." I think I speak for all of us when I say a movie with "things" in it would be unacceptable. Heather, Michael, and Josh do see some rocks and run away from them screaming, though. They also encounter (run away screaming from) some evil sticks, a psychotic slime mold, and finally a particularly murderous pine cone. Then, they wander around, and after a while the movie ends. I think they died. Do not see this movie. Don't even watch it when it's on TV, it could turn out that you have a ratings box in your TV without knowing it and then YOU would be personally responsible for giving money to people who think sticks are scary. You don't want that.
Rating: 
Summary: It Is Not That Bad
Review: I first heard about this movie when it first came out in theatre's because where I'm from there was this big rumor going around that it was all real and visiting the web site led you to believe the same. So I set out to see it. I did and the same day found out it was not real so I then said that it sucked. When it came out on tape I re-watched it and came to the conclusion that it is not that bad. Alot of people complain that they cuss too much. Let's be honest if you were lost in haunted woods, saw voo doo dolls made of sticks hanging from the trees and had your tent attacked by little ghost kids you would swear too whether you want to admit it or not.... I know I would. In order to enjoy this fild you would have to watch it by yourself with the lights out and really try to put yourself in their situation to enjoy it. The acting wasn't that bad at all, I mean they did what any normal scared human being would so hence the swearing. this is not that bad of a movei I just couldn't watch it too many times.
Rating: 
Summary: Boring, But Sometimes Good
Review: This movie was not scary, but it was acted as home video footage. So you can't really complain about it not being scary. I think this movie was made so the viewers can think to themselves, 'what if that was me?' Imagine yourself in a forest that you can't escape from, and especially if you keep getting encounters with ghosts. I gave this movie two stars because I thought it was boring, but there were a couple of freaky scenes, which were good. This film will probably be remembered as a film that a lot of people like and dislike. An equal movie, to be exact.
Rating:
Summary: Way overhyped!
Review: This looks like a movie that I would make, as a joke. There were only two remotely scary scenes in the entire movie. The rest is just three people, who can't act for the stones they throw, running around with a video camera and getting an R rating by using four letter words more often than Elizabeth Taylor in the brilliant "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" Who's afraid of this movie? A bunch of crackheads? No just some people who think they're going to be totally risque because they like and "indie film". OOOOOh, dare to be different!(sarcasm!)
Rating:
Summary: Why can't I give 0 stars??
Review: I waited a year and a half and finally caught this on cable. Well, that's 2 hours of my life I'll never get back...
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