TOW #1

Article: 'Blair Witch': Shaky Cams That Left Audiences Shaking
(http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/11/movies/blair-witch-shaky-cams-that-left-audiences-shaking.html?)

On September 16, the new Blair Witch film is to be released to theaters, hoping to draw in a new audience and put a modern twist on the classic "The Blair Witch Project." Marc Spitz uses this opportunity to reflect on the original film and the reasons for its success.
Spitz wants to show the world why "The Blair Witch Project" gained such popularity, gaining almost a quarter of a billion dollars since its release. Spitz writes, "The gothic nature of “The Blair Witch Project” seemed a bracing counterpoint to the modernity that marked much of American culture at the turn of the millennium. In an increasingly digital world, the feeling of something authentically creepy proved irresistible." He argues that the simplicity of the film (due to the directors' lack of money and connections) set it aside from previous horror movies. Most of the others had resorted to gore and violence to scare their audiences, while The Blair Witch used shaky cameras and realism to invoke fear.
Spitz writes to those who are planning on seeing the new "Blair Witch." He says, "What the new one cannot possibly do is replicate the shock of the original’s success or the collective goose bumps it seemed to produce that pivotal summer when it became a pop-cultural phenomenon and changed the way horror films were made." This is his way of preparing the audience for what surely cannot top the original. He then goes on to explain why the new film will never be able to compete with the success of the old one.
Something important that Spitz does it utilize quotes from the directors of "The Blair Witch Project." This allows his audience to truly understand what made them unique. One example is, "Mr. Sánchez said: 'It was a total experiment, a 24-hour-a-day shoot. There were a lot of times where we were literally eating somewhere, and the actors were still in the woods shooting.'" The inclusion of this quote shows how casual the filming atmosphere was, something that wasn't usual for horror films. It also shows that most of the film was up to the actors, with little to no direction from the directors. One can credit the success of the movie to this natural unfolding.
While no one expects "Blair Witch" to be nearly as good as is predecessor, it's nice to reflect on the impact "The Blair Witch Project" has made on the horror film genre, and what has been made because of it.