Curse of the Blair Witch

Curse of the Blair Witch (1999)

*** (out of 4)

This is the TV special, which ended up leading to one of the biggest blockbusters of all time. This documentary build up the "legend" of the Blair Witch and also made people think that three filmmakers went into the woods to do a documentary on it and disappeared only to have their footage found later. This "footage" was released into theaters as THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, which of course became a huge hit. I must admit that this feature was a lot more effective back when it was originally released but watching it all these years later at least kept me entertained due in large part to nostalgia. With that said, you still have to give this fake documentary credit for at least making up a good story to play along side the actual film. I thought there were some good stories here and the most important thing is that it actually built up interest in the film and that still rings true when viewed today. I thought the best aspect was the backstory on the legend of the Blair Witch as it managed to be quite creepy and the story itself is just so well told that you can't help but get caught up in it. What doesn't work so well are a few of the interviews and especially the stuff from a 70s TV show. At just 44-minutes the film sets itself up like one of the countless reality/docu-dramas that are all over the place today. For the most part it succeeds but once you know the truth it's hard to see it in the same way.

Well, I actually saw the movie and knew it was fiction before I saw this special. I must say though the actors in it are great and how hey make some pictures look weathered and old is pretty cool. There are some parts that are so cheesy I had to change the channel. I don't want to say it was a bad special because if you watch it before the film it will add some history and more depth to the film and will probably make you enjoy The Blair Witch Project even more.

I saw the movie before Is aw this TV special, though now I wish I had done in in reverse order. I was far more scared and intrigued after watching the TV special than I was after I saw the movie, which was good but fairly disappointing. Even if you hated the movie itself, please give this TV special a chance. It has many details and answers many questions than the movie does not.

If I didn't know that this is mockumentary, I would definitely believe in every word they said there!

Movie is shoot so clever and good (which is reasonable because authors were fine documentary moviemakers before they did this and BWP) that is totally believable and real unless you read end credits where you can see that entire thing is fake :)

It is my favourite mockumentary, next to Jackson's "Forgotten Silver" which is funny and, in most scenes pretty obviously fake while this one is totally realistic.

10/10

Released to TV in the summer of 1999 three weeks before the premiere of the found-footage film "The Blair Witch Project," "Curse of the Blair Witch" is a mockumentary (fake documentary) that goes over the mythology of the Blair witch and interviews people who knew the three amateur filmmakers who supposedly went missing in 1994.

How do you review a documentary that's phony? I suppose by how real it makes its topic appear. As far as that goes, this is a quality mockumentary that inspires interest in the non-subject. I say "non-subject" because there never was a Blair witch; there wasn't even a town of Blair; nor are any of the people in the film real. It's all fake. But "Curse of the Blair Witch" was an ingenious set-up to fool people into believing (or, at least, MAYBE believing) the found-footage of "The Blair Witch Project." With the hysteria of that movie far behind us "Curse of the Blair Witch" is still entertaining for what it is and you can't help but respect its cleverness.

I helps that the "documentary" only runs 44 minutes.

GRADE: B