Tuesday, October 3, 2017

31 Days of Halloween 2017: Blair Witch

2016, Adam Wingard (You're Next) -- download

In case you haven't guessed, this season we will be doing a number of series. Marmy wanted to see the previous movies, leading up to this one by a director we have come to enjoy. His previous flick, The Guest, might be drawn from the "seen before October" pile to round out any nights we might miss. Yes, I cheat. Sue me.

So, thankyou but this one forgets the second one existed, but for some light inspiration. It picks up almost 20 years later with James, the younger brother of Heather dragging along some friends, one of who is making a documentary -- well, duh, that's the schtick. The best bit is the comparison, as we see all the current tech that she is using including earpiece cams, drone cams, small portable cams, etc. They are meeting up with a local Burkittsville couple who claim to have found a lost tape connected to Heather. James has been obsessed with finding his sister, since she disappeared when he was four. Or at the very least, finding out what exactly happened to her.

The funny thing about this one, is that it is actually about the Blair Witch. The first never gave us any real antagonist, unless you count the woods themselves. The second only had hallucinations and visions, but who knows and who cares where they came from. But this one delves deep and adds a mythology to the series.

While the movie does the expected stuff, of weird things happening in the woods and a state of constantly being lost, it adds in some metaphysical and timey wimey bendy wendy stuff that was a lot of fun. Not long after the crew drives off the local flavour couple, they do a roundabout in the woods, and end up right back at the camp they had spent the night before. And then out of the dark woods, the local couple appears, all frazzled and half way to nuts --- they claim to have been wandering the woods for five days, or more accurately, five nights; no dawn has ever come. Ooooo, pocket dimension!

After some rather tension pushed to 11 time, they end up at That House, the house from the first movie, not the Rustom Parr house, cuz that was burned down. So, the unexplained house that is definitely 20th century, but... who built it? But this is the house where Heather disappeared so in go James and the documentarian Lisa. And who is after them? Yes, the actual Blair Witch, who seems more monster than wicca woman.

What I really liked about this one, besides some novel ways of referencing the last two movies (even though the second never really happened) was the creepy world it built. The Witch is drawing people in, and when she finds appropriate sacrifices, they are not allowed to leave the wood. It becomes impossible. I gather she enjoys their fear, maybe it tastes better. And then, of course, she makes sure the tapes and digital footage can be found (or we would not be watching a movie) so they next cycle can pick up.

Also, neat way to hide the fact he was making the third --- by doing all the initial hype as a movie called "The Woods".

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