Never before has such a poor quality movie made so much money. This little film made back in 1994 (fourteen years ago) took in an unprecedented amount of cash for such an amateurish movie. Critique aside, it was the very shaky filming technique which resulted in the public acceptance of the entire premise. It all began with a myth, local folklore whatever you wish to call it.

Way back in 1785 a woman living in Blair, Maryland is accused of being a witch. She is banished from the village which at that time was tantamount to a death sentence. She is never seen again. Exactly one year later, her accusers and half of all the children in Blair disappear - never to be seen again. Over a period of 150 years there are an unusual number of child murders and child mutilations in and around the area of Blair, Maryland.

Now we move ahead to 1994. The village of Blair was abandoned long ago and the town of Burkitsville was built at that location. No one in town is unfamiliar with the old legend and few will walk through the nearby woods alone - at night.

Three college students have read the legend in an old book written in 1805. It appealed to them and they formulated a plan. They would travel to Burkitsville and try to interview the local townspeople to hear what their version of the story might be. Off they went in their plaid jackets and knit caps and carrying a camcorder. The idea of being scared by an allegedly haunted section of woods in Maryland didn't even enter in to the equation.

As the story developed in the press it was said that after interviewing a few people in and around Burkitsville, they bought some food supplies (enough to last a weekend) and camcorder in hand, trekked off through the woods. No one stopped to consider what they hoped to discover considering all the years that had passed between 1785 and 1994. The public was informed through news stories and rumors that the students, two boys and one girl had set out that winter weekend - never to be seen again. Exactly one year later their film "Blair Witch Project" was found underneath an old cabin in the woods.

Eerie similarities. OOOOOH. Everyone reacted to the clever hoax with either fear or disbelief. Was it just a story they wondered. Could it possibly be true. Naturally everyone rushed out to see the movie for themselves. The amateurish quality of the film (which indicated the camcorder was not held steady) along with the girl's talent for horrific screaming endowed the story with an illusion of reality. Controversy regarding its veracity continued. Was it a clever hoax orrrrrrrrr was it something far more sinister. Adding to the illusion of fear being experienced by the actors was the fact that the picture (the movie itself) was constantly moving up and down. Annoying to the audience but very effective as an expression of fright. As the new myth spread more and more people flocked to see for themselves. This phenomenon was scary and interesting and well worth the price of a movie ticket to experience...

Meanwhile back to the source which included the two directors of the film, and the small cast of characters sworn to secrecy. They were amazed at the amount of money earned with their little, cheap to produce film that took the country by storm. Yes - it was all carefully planned and carried out, but whoever thought it would become as much a phenomenon as it did. Never before has a short, poorly made movie earned all the money the "Blair Witch Project" took in.

 

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