Tag line : The Terror Continues...

Taking on a totally different approach from the original movie, the film opens up with a montage of news bulletins reporting on the phenomenal box office success of the original Blair Witch Project film, and shows fans descending on the real life(?) town of Burkettsville in Maryland, wanting to see where the film was shot and find out if there is actually a real life witch.

The majority of townsfolk interviewed seem annoyed at the invasion of all these unwanted tourists in their quiet town. None more so than the local sheriff who we see shouting "Get out of them woods and go home, there's no god-damn Blair Witch" through the PA horn on his patrol car at the multitudes of people descending on the forests.

However, one person who is more than happy to welcome the influx of visitors is Jeff Donovan, proprieter of the "Blair Witch" tourist shop. For him, things couldn't be better. So much so that he has even started a "Blair Witch-Hunt" forest walk, taking happy campers into the woods to see the films shooting locations.

Following the films opening titles, which are accompanied to the thumping tunes of Marilyn Manson's "Disposable Teens", we are introduced to the rest of the films main characters. Steve and his girlfriend Tristen, who're gathering research for their book about the supposed Blair Witch legend, along with a young girl named Erica who has an interest in witchcraft and paganism. The final member of the group being a Goth/Metal chick called Kim, who's decided to tag along after seeing the film.

Their trip into the woods does not go as well as planned however. They wake up after the first night to find their camp has been trashed, and they all seemed to have suffered a 5 hour blackout where they can't account for anything (now THAT must have been a party!). To make matters worse, they later find out that a rival tour group have been found brutally murdered up at coffin rock, and the local sheriff is convinced that Jeff's group is somehow responsible.

It is only after Jeff starts reviewing the footage he captured on his camera equipment that the shocking events of that night are uncovered. Even more disturbing is the fact that it seems the Blair Witch legend was not just a movie, and as they all start to experience strange visions and flashbacks, it becomes apparent that they have brought something more than just camera footage back from the Black Hills area of the forest.

Perhaps not a sequel in the true sense, which instead of following up on the original plot refers to it as a work of fiction, and follows a group of fans investigating how much of it was based on fact. It is however certainly more interesting and better paced. If you enjoyed the original (or even if you didn't that much), you should enjoy this.

Overall Marks : 6/10

Other Information.

• Alternate tag line "You can't go forward until you go back... the Blair Witch experience more terrifying than ever".

• The films budget was $15 Million. Substantially more than the original movies budget of a mere $35,000.

• The film uses several traits from the original, all the actors were cast from relative unknowns and they all use their real names (mostly).

• Kim Director previously starred in the Spike Lee films "He Got Game", "Summer of Sam" and "Bamboozled. Jeffrey Donovan was a TV actor and has appeared in "Law & Order", "Millennium", "The Pretender" and "Spin City". He's also starred in the film "Sleepers".

• Director Joe Berlinger had previously directed the documentary "Paradise Lost : The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills", which concerns the arrest and trial of 3 American youths accused of killing three young teenagers in small town America based on questionable evidence.

• Erica Leerson also appeared in the TV show "The Soprano's", and Tristen Skyler has also starred in the film "Cadillac Man". Stephen Barker Turner has appeared in the TV series "Law & Order" and "Sex and the City".

• There is an excellent Hard Rock/Heavy Metal soundtrack to this album, but unfortunately the opening song "Disposable teens" by Marilyn Manson does not appear on it. So I would recommend you buy his Holywood album in addition to the soundtrack.

• The director had the cast watch numerous classic horror films prior to filming, in order to get them "in the mood".

Cast & Crew.

Buy the UK DVD (Spec-Ed).

Buy the CD Soundtrack.

Buy Marilyn Mansons "Holywood" CD

Buy the US DVD

Notes on affiliate sites.

Other films in the series.

Contemporary Classics.

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