Subject:
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Re: Blair Witch Project - Thoughts?
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.off-topic.debate
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Date:
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Thu, 27 Jan 2000 23:43:44 GMT
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Viewed:
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293 times
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> My friend rented this movie this weekend, and after watching, I can't
> seem to find what the big deal was. I saw some parodies on it, and the
> actual movie was just stupid. I was actually rooting for whatever killed
> the filmmakers at the end. Does anyone know anything about this, or was
> it just over hyped?
This movie *really* affected me; such that I would go so far as to say I
was not stable after seeing it. Had I known what I was in for, I would
have not chosen to go. Shortsightedness and a complete lack of common
sense at the time enabled my attendance. Have I made this melodramatic
enough? :)
[side note] Most of the people I talked to who have seen the movie are
pretty opinionated about it. They either thought it was the scariest
thing they had seen (this includes veteran horror moviegoers), or the
most inane, overhyped movie they had seen in awhile (this includes
veteran horror moviegoers). I found *very* few people in the middle.
More on this at the end of this post. [end side note]
There are a few "movie" flaws here that no one can argue, all having to
do with "why the heck would the camera be rolling?". There were three
times I could think of that this really stuck out for me, but the
accuracy of the scenes soon washed over these flaws, and the movie
continued on. Ever had a dream where you were watching yourself in the
dream? Same problem. And usually the proceedings of the dream was enough
for you to lose that question, and watch what was going on. Those who
were not connecting with the content of the movie undoubtedly had to sit
through a really rough homemade slopfest.
The Blair Witch Project wasn't a matter of "getting it" or "not getting
it". Rather, it was a portrayal of how people work (and didn't work),
and what that could lead to. If you didn't plug into the trio pretty
soon after the movie started, you didn't have any point of reference to
see the degeneration that happened. Being objective in this movie will
kill the movie for you. Being subjective will kill you instead of the
movie. :)
After I plugged in (and I say this a couple of months later, looking
back at the experience), there were three things in increasing order of
importance that really made this movie a quality work, all concerning
accuracy.
First was the accuracy of the portrayal of witchcraft. I'm not
knowledgeable of the specifics of witchcraft, but I am aware of the
suppositions involved in how witchcraft works, and this movie does an
excellent job at underlining these suppositions. While clearly this
isn't prerequisite knowledge for viewing the movie (as evidenced by all
those who were scared silly), it added extra punch into freaking me out.
Second, having a "barebones" approach underlined the here-and-now aspect
of the movie. All that bouncing around, bad camera angles, lousy audio,
etc., helped to connect me to the three people who were experiencing
what was going on. So I was experiencing it with them, as the movie
intended. This also includes all of the "corny" people they met, and the
oddball comments, the "petty" fights, and so forth. Maybe I live a
strange life, but what I saw conformed to the way that most people work
in real life. People really do tend to be that strange.
So as the degeneration of the three occurred, the cause-and-effect was
spot on. I thought the lady was a phenomenal actress, and the escalating
flaws between the people in the group were handled masterfully. From an
"objective" standpoint, yes, they were being *really* stupid. What makes
this movie so scary was that they were capable of being "that stupid".
Yes, they were capable of being that stupid. But neither they nor anyone
else would reach that point, unless something really drastic happened.
Usually it's of the order of some serious alcohol. Replace alcohol with
witchcraft, note each and every point that the three of them make
unusual choices or react in bizarre ways, and you see a subtle web of
manipulation form of ever increasing horror. It gives me chills just to
type about this now. This is where the third and most important element
comes in.
The third element is the distinction between lesser and greater evil,
and this movie is the best portrayal I have ever seen to that effect
(quick note--I'm not experienced in the horror genre, nor do I plan to
be). To be plugged into what the characters were doing, but only be "the
observer" and know how it happens but not why it happens, is to witness
the migration from lesser to greater evil, and be equally powerless to
stop it.
This is getting long, so I'll expand on these elements in another post
if someone wants. Otherwise, here's the Blair Witch Project in a
nutshell:
Accuracy in witchcraft, in setting, in lesser and greater evil.
Connection with the three main characters.
Accuracy + Connection = freak-out horror movie.
If you have one or more of the accuracy elements as a point of
reference, *and* you connected with the characters early on, you got
scared. The more you had, the worse it was for you. If you were missing
*either* of the two additives (usually the connection), you had to sit
through someone's handycam goofball movie.
Who was better off? I can't say. As much as it hurt, I'm glad I saw the
movie; it forced me to face some issues I wouldn't have otherwise done
in terms of recognizing the difference between lesser and greater evil.
And I wouldn't wish the same process on anyone.
Adam
bwappo@ee.net
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Message has 1 Reply:
 | | Re: Blair Witch Project - Thoughts?
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| Adam, (...) Hmm... I know I do that from time to time as well, such as why did I just spend 300.00 on LEGO? :) I can tell it would affect some people though. (...) Well, I know I am usually on one side or the other (Usually on the right ;) ), and (...) (25 years ago, 27-Jan-00, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
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Message is in Reply To:
| | Blair Witch Project - Thoughts?
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| To All, My friend rented this movie this weekend, and after watching, I can't seem to find what the big deal was. I saw some parodies on it, and the actual movie was just stupid. I was actually rooting for whatever killed the filmmakers at the end. (...) (25 years ago, 24-Jan-00, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
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