A child covers their mother’s mouth when the latter mentions the Blair Witch.īecause the film switches between a camcorder and a 16MM film camera, using the latter for the expressed sake of the “professional” documentary Heather is shooting, it gets to establish multiple layers of “reality”.
#BLAIR WITCH PROJECT RATING PROFESSIONAL#
The old man repeats his story in more professional manner when captured on the 16 MM camera.An old man talks about the Blair witch on the camcorder.Because the polish associated with a studio project is missing from these “proper” shots, they give the “improper” shots an extra genuine feeling. However, it is precisely because her attempts at selling fear in such a forward fashion fail, that the terrors she experiences in the latter half of the film gain their legitimacy. Her narration is overdramatic and makes the attempt at horror on her part feel cheesy. The juxtaposition of the black and white scenes to the colored scenes which came before, accentuate the realism the film goes for precisely because of the amateur nature of Heather’s filmmaking.Īs she uses the 16 MM to film a set of insert shots in foreboding manner – a town sign, an angel figure, headstones in a cemetery, etc – it’s apparent she’s trying to evoke a sense of fear and immensity for the audience she thinks is going to watch her piece. The former camera is her attempt to capture a “behind-the-scenes” and the latter camera is for the for the documentary proper. Upon getting to the location of where the “Blair Witch” myth started, Heather, the director of the documentary, switches cameras from the camcorder, which records in color, to the 16-MM film camera, which records in black and white. The earnestness by which Heather tries to make her documentary creepy makes what happens to her and her crew cruelly ironic. The voiceover narration by Heather adds to this feeling and consequently makes the entire production feel amateurish. The amateur attempt at setting a creepy mood via striking and unnerving establishing shots captured by 16 MM film immediately makes it clear that this is a student film.
As the crew sets off to Burkittsville, Maryland to get footage for their “film”, the viewer knows they’re marching off to their doom. Likewise, Michael telling his mother goodbye hits harder because it’s the last time he’s ever going to see her. Heather’s unending enthusiasm feels like a cruel joke. This impending doom permeates the film and tinges each of the introduction to the documentary’s crew with melancholy. The cheery footage is confirmation that she, and her two cameramen, Joshua (Joshua Leonard) and Michael (Michael Williams) are no more. Consequently, Heather’s announcement transforms from quirky and cheerful to swan song the viewer knows that her documentary will lead her to her disappearance. Unlike other horrors that start with the “true story” introduction, like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre by Tobe Hooper, The Blair Witch‘s look confirms its announcement, thereby imbuing it with a grounded feeling. It becomes apparent that the camera technician is trying to get the camera to focus on its subject, Heather (Heather Donahue), who explains that she is going to film a documentary on the eponymous “Blair Witch”. In other words, this is a “true” story based on true, un-edited, footage.Īs if in demonstration and confirmation of this status, a completely unfocused mess of colors permeate the screen. The film opens on the title card, white letters against a black backdrop, before informing the viewer that the footage presented comes from three student filmmakers who disappeared while shooting it. The tame introduction gives the footage that follows a credibility that something more stylized or pronounced would ruin. The explanation of the source of the footage informs the viewer that no one in the film is going to make it and the amateur quality of the footage and technique throughout the film seemingly confirms that this film is in fact genuine. Though the opening seems tame today, back when it was released, this introduction marked The Blair Witch Project as a very real kind of horror.
0 kommentar(er)
