The story begins with a narrative posted on the screen "In October of 1994, three student filmmakers disappeared in the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland, while shooting a documentary....A year later their footage was found". So, as an audience member you know something is going to happen. But how the story unfolds in describing the events that lead to the film-maker's demise leave you on the edge of your seat!
In the beginning the filmmakers conduct interviews with the local townspeople concerning the urban legend of the Blair Witch. Several people comment that they have heard of the legend and that the witch would not let her victims look at her while she conducted acts of terror and murder on the children of the village. With this information, the film-maker's set off on their journey into the woods to document any evidence that they can find concerning the Blair Witch.
Upon entering the woods, the filmmakers find small stacks of rocks neatly placed along the path's entrance. Their placement and presence causes questions among the group, but none give the observation any more thought at the time. During the first night in the woods, the filmmakers are awakened by a mysterious and unseen noise on the outskirt of their camp site. The crew tries to film any activity and justify the noise in the dark as merely animals. However, the next morning the group discovers three piles of neatly stacked rocks surrounding their tent. The rocks were not there the night before, something or someone had visited their camp site during the night and left the rocks as evidence and to suggest that their presence in the woods was known. This discovery sets the plot for the rest of the movie as we now have onset by the characters. They think that there is something out in the woods and it is watching them. The next night is equally unnerving for the filmmakers, as they are disturbed while sleeping in their tent. However, this time, the tent is violently shaken and the group flees from the tent in the darkness of the night, scared out of their wits. After returning back to the camp site in the morning, they discover green slime covering Josh's belongings. This scene sets the tone for the first discovery that there is something in the woods. As the campers pack up their belongs and prepare to hike back to their car, they discover that they have lost or misplaced their map. They are deep in the woods and unsure which direction will lead them back to safety. They are short on supplies and trust within the group starts to break down. Equally important, during their days hike, they discover strange stick figures hanging in a grove of trees. Now, the filmmakers are really unnerved. As they leave the grove in search of a way out of the woods, one of the characters, Mike, confesses that he had kicked the map into the stream during a break the day before. Did the witch take control of Mike and will him to commit such a terrible act leaving the group helplessly lost in the woods? Tension and the sense of hopelessness increases throughout the group. They decide to camp for the night as dusk is quickly approaching. Upon waking the next morning, Josh is missing and is no where to be found. His friends call out for him, but he does not answer. Then, Heather finds a stack of twigs tied together with a strip of cloth, presumably from Josh's shirt. Heather unties the twigs and discovers a piece of bloody cloth containing what appears to be a human ear. This is the conformation stage for the characters. Josh is missing with no explanation, their food is gone, they are lost in the woods and they are scared. The two remaining filmmakers pack up their supplies and start to hike in search of their vehicle. They hike in vain, as they do not reach their destination. Night is falling and they hear what they think is Josh yelling from the distance. They run through the woods in search of their friend and they stumble upon an old deserted house. As they enter the house, the sound of Josh's voice is louder. First they check upstairs with no success. Then, the noise seems to coming from the basement. As they move through the house, the only light provided is from the spot light on the VHS camera. Heather is trailing behind Mike as he enters the basement, and then from behind the lens of the camera carried by Heather you see Mike standing in the corner and the camera drops to the group and goes fuzzy. This scene suggests that the witch has lead Mike and Heather to the basement to meet their demise. As Mike is standing in the corner with his back to the door, the witch will not let him look at her as she kills Heather as suggested in the comments from the local townspeople concerning the urban legend.
While according to N. Carroll's definition of a monster, that is something that is threatening, impure and can not be explained by science, we never actually see the witch and therefore can not conclude that a witch is responsible for the disappearance and demise of the characters and that there is no Art-Horror in this picture. However, C. Freeland suggests that by characterizing Dread as an ongoing fear of imminent threat form something unnerving and evil, yet not-well defined or understood. This approach, Dread, to the creation of the Blair Witch Project seems to be the more likely and applicable way to describe what the director is trying to emulate to the audience through the suspense scenes and indescribable events that transpire.
In summary, this film was very effective at scaring me, in fact it scared me to the bone. After watching the film, I woke up during the night thinking about what I had watched and chills ran up the back of my neck. Call it art-horror, or call it art-dread, the fact is simple...I was scared! In my opinion, this film is a classic horror film.
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