The Blair Witch Project (1999)
Directed by: Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sánchez
Written by: Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sánchez
Starring: Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard, Michael C. Williams
In 1999, horror fans were treated to a film whose impact would bring new life to a subgenre that it would forever be remembered for. By no means the first, and certainly not the last, THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT is probably the most influential found footage film to grace our screens and it’s finally getting a release that honours its importance to cinema, with some tantalising extras to boot.
I’m not going to review the film here, as it’s already been covered wonderfully already on HorrorCultFilms, with a review by Pazuzu and a review by Ross.
The film focuses on three students, Heather, Josh and Mike, who went missing after venturing into the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland to film a documentary on the legend of the Blair witch. This is the edited footage from their cameras which were found a year after their disappearance.
In this review, I’m going to dive into the new release, with the assumption that you’ve already seen the film, otherwise, let it be known that spoilers lie ahead! If you haven’t already seen THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT already, then this release is definitely worth parting with your coin for.
Second Sight Films have brought genre classic THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT to Limited Edition Blu-ray Box set, which consists of a two-disc release, an 184-page hardback book with archive production materials and new essays by Stacey Abbott, Becky Darke, Adam Hart, Craig Ian Mann, Mary Beth McAndrews, Dr. Cecilia Sayad, Peter Turner and Heather Wixson, Heather’s Journal All-Weather Backcountry Notebook and three collector’s art cards, all packaged in a rigid slipcase with new artwork by Timothy Pittides. As usual, you can also get the film on Standard Edition Blu-ray which just includes the disc features as detailed below.
Disc One of The Blair Witch Project Blu-Ray contains three versions of the film and two audio commentaries.
The Theatrical Cut (35mm) runs at 1 hour 21 minutes 21 seconds and is the version transferred to 35mm film for original theatrical distribution. Compared to the other two reconstructed releases below, the Theatrical Cut (35mm) has the imperfections, blurriness and quality you’d expect from film over a quarter of a century old. Whereas the Theatrical Cut (1 hour 21 mins 21 secs) and Festival Cut (1 hour 25 mins 19 secs) are much clearer, crisper and sharper, having been restored and remastered from original Hi8 and 18mm film elements, supervised and approved by the filmmakers themselves. The Festival Cut is the version that was sent to the Sundance Film Festival and most noticeably is missing an interview from the beginning of the film with a young guy in a yellow cap who mentions a key piece in regards to the Blair Witch mythos about Rustin Parr making his victims stand in the corner. The Theatrical Cut includes this particular interview – an integral moment which I believe makes the film’s ending much more effective than without it.
The first of the audio commentaries is a new one featuring Second Sight Films’ regulars, Australian film critics Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson. Heller-Nicholas talks about how she covered The Blair Witch Project in two of her books whilst Nelson reminisces about having worked in a cinema at the time of the film’s theatrical release, where customers were getting sick from shaky-cam induced motion sickness. As a fellow sufferer of motion sickness, I can relate, however The Blair Witch Project has never been a trigger for me, unlike Irreversible. Anyhow, I digress. It’s clear both Heller-Nicholas and Nelson are enthusiastic about The Blair Witch Project, as a genuinely scary film, and they delight in focusing more on the movie itself in the commentary rather than treading well-worn ground on the breakthrough of the movie, both online and financially. They talk about the content of the movie, gender politics (being Heller-Nicholas’ speciality), witchcraft, the idea of being lost and isolated, and the film’s process and production. The rapport between the two critics makes for an enjoyable, easy listen and their input is always welcomed.
The second audio commentary is an archival commentary from the directors and producers of the movie, including co-directors Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez and producers Robin Cowie, Gregg Hale and Michael Monello. This is a very relaxed commentary, and quite fun too, with the five sharing their experience of making the movie, providing incredible insights about different aspects of the scenes and various stories.
Disc Two of The Blair Witch Project Blu-Ray is jam-packed full of amazing special features for Blair Witch fans to get lost in. First off is the massive feature length The Blair Witch Documentary (2 hours 30 mins), a new Second Sight Films production directed by Jed Shepherd (yes, the writer of Zoom-horror Host). In the documentary, the filmmakers and producers talk about making The Blair Witch Project, right from the inception of the idea, getting funding and creating the myth to be believable, through to the audition process, the editing and presentation of the movie. A great deal is talked about the marketing of the film, and how the website and internet message board activity, as well as being featured on the radio, had an impact in growing the film’s fanbase organically before it was even released. The team discuss the film’s reception, both at Sundance and theatrically, and also touch upon the Blair Witch sequel. A major highlight about this documentary though is that there’s so much behind-the-scenes footage from the shoot, brain-storming sessions and back-office taken at the time of making the film, that we really get to see what it was like for the crew and stars working on it before it became the film we know and love today, whilst the modern-day interviews show them reflecting on the film now, 25 years later. This really is a delight to watch.
Other special features on Disc 2 include:
Analogue Horror in a Digital World (11 mins 29 secs)
A visual essay by Mike Muncer which breaks down which elements give the film its power. He describes how The Blair Witch Project stands apart from other found footage films in the genre, and how being made at a specific time and place influences it as it straddles analogue and digital era.
Deleted Scenes (1 hour 31 mins 44 secs)
This feature shares deleted footage shot by Heather, Mike and Josh, from preparing for the documentary, segments in Burkittsville and then into the woods.
Alternate Endings (8 mins 1 secs)
It seems there were a few ideas on how Mike should be found and this features four of them: Corner Backwards, Corner Forwards (facing forwards), Hanging and Levitating. I think they picked the right one for the movie.
Curse of the Blair Witch (43 mins 53 secs)
A mockumentary investigating the origins of the Blair Witch myth, Elly Kedward, Rustin Parr and the disappearance of Heather, Mike and Josh, through interviews with family, teachers and friends, as though The Blair Witch Project was real. Some of the footage seen here was shot for the movie itself, as the original concept for The Blair Witch Project was for it to be presented in the style of a documentary programme, but that idea changed during editing, so the unused footage was repurposed for this promotional mockumentary.
Cannes 1999 Interview (10 mins 51 secs)
The directors Daniel and Eduardo talk about the online side of the marketing to accompany the film, the idea for The Blair Witch Project, collaborating together and what they wanted to get out of the film in this archival interview from Cannes.
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