Every Blair Witch Project Movie Ranked, Worst to Best – Screen Rant

The Blair Witch Project began the endless onslaught of found footage horror in 1999, and here's how it and its two sequels stack up, worst to best. The highly controversial 1980 Italian film Cannibal Holocaust was arguably the first found footage movie, albeit with parts not seen through that lens. That said, it definitely wasn't until The Blair Witch Project arrived to break down box office profit records that Hollywood as a whole, and most of the moviegoing population, really took notice of the format.

Just when it seemed like there might be an end to the found footage tide, Paranormal Activity hit in 2009, making similar profits to Blair Witch, and seemingly cementing the sub-genre as a permanent horror fixture. That's not to say that all found footage movies are bad, or that they don't have lots of fans. The main problem is that found footage, by its very nature, allows for horror movies to be made super cheaply, leading to filmmakers without any discernible talent contributing many torturously terrible entries into the mix.

Related: Blair Witch Project Had A Bad Influence On Its Maryland Town

Thankfully, The Blair Witch Project itself remains a great movie over two decades after its release, at least in the eyes of most. There will always be people who reject the found footage style as a rule, but as far as the format goes, Blair Witch sits near the top of the mountain. However, its sequels are a different story.

To call 2000's Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 a disappointing sequel would be a massive understatement. After the surprise success of The Blair Witch Project, Artisan Entertainment couldn't wait to capitalize, rushing out a follow-up. With celebrated documentary filmmaker Joe Berlinger directing, and future notables like Jeffrey Donovan and Erica Leershen in leading roles, Book of Shadows could've been a winner. Unfortunately, its pointlessly convoluted plot in which The Blair Witch Project is a fictional film in the world of the sequel proved to be highly uncompelling. Book of Shadows isn't unwatchable, but it's far from necessary viewing.

When the film at that point titled The Woods was revealed at San Diego Comic-Con 2016 as being a secret Blair Witch Project sequel, the horror community went wild. Unfortunately, that stroke of marketing genius was much more thrilling than the actual film. To be sure, Blair Witch 2016 is much better than Book of Shadows, but it still feels like nothing more than a retread of the original with modern technology and time travel elements thrown in. There are some good scenes and creepy moments, but it just doesn't have much reason to exist, and the ending CGI monster - which may or may not be the witch herself - looks absolutely awful.

Serving as a testament to the fact that budget limitations are rarely a death knell for horror films, the original Blair Witch Project remains easily the best of the franchise, even though its two sequels had so many more resources to work with. While it's doubtful anyone still thinks the movie's events really happened, The Blair Witch Project is still probably the best example to date of realism in a found footage film, as it remains entirely possible to buy Heather, Josh, and Mike as three bickering college students going through the worst time of their lives. There's no CGI monstrosities here, only unexplained sounds, unsettling stick structures, and a disorienting filming style.

More: Horror Movies Make More Profit - Here's Why

Why Stephen King's The Langoliers Time Travel Rules Make No Sense

Michael Kennedy is an avid movie and TV fan that's been working for Screen Rant in various capacities since 2014. In that time, Michael has written over 2000 articles for the site, first working solely as a news writer, then later as a senior writer and associate news editor. Most recently, Michael helped launch Screen Rant's new horror section, and is now the lead staff writer when it comes to all things frightening. A FL native, Michael is passionate about pop culture, and earned an AS degree in film production in 2012. He also loves both Marvel and DC movies, and wishes every superhero fan could just get along. When not writing, Michael enjoys going to concerts, taking in live professional wrestling, and debating pop culture. A long-term member of the Screen Rant family, Michael looks forward to continuing on creating new content for the site for many more years to come.

See original here:
Every Blair Witch Project Movie Ranked, Worst to Best - Screen Rant

Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero