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BOOK OF SHADOWS: BLAIR WITCH 2

While a sequel to the ultra-successful The Blair Witch Project was inevitable, it was perhaps equally inevitable that any such sequel would pale in comparison to the original "indie" horror flick. For while the Blair Witch was a truly innovative, low budget, scare fest, the sequel dubbed Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 is a more polished, albeit highly derivative film.

The premise of the original film is as memorable as the story behind the picture. The Blair Witch Project introduced audiences to those infamous three student filmmakers who allegedly disappeared in the woods of Maryland while shooting a documentary about a local legend the Blair Witch. The film itself was billed as the found footage of these three young documentarians a haunting account of the trio's final days while lost in the woods. Of course, The Blair Witch Project was a hoax, the entire situation staged though one suspects that there are still some audience members lurking out there who believe to this day that what they saw was an actual documentary. This suspicion is simply proof of how effective the picture was.

The film also stands as one of the greatest success stories of independent filmmaking. Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez, two unknown would-be auteurs, produced their little Blair Witch project for a mere $30,000. The film not only went on to be the most profitable movie ever (from a cost to earnings standpoint), but it also managed to take its place as one of the hallmarks of modern horror alongside such films as Night of the Living Dead and The Exorcist.

Unfortunately, Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 fell short on box office, as well originality. Neither does it score points for faithfulness to the original film. Whereas that picture rode largely on word of mouth and a heavily web-based marketing campaign, the same droves of people that went to see the flavor-of-the-month hip movie that was Blair Witch 1 had little interest in a sequel, since the Blair Witch phenomenon had long since grown passé by the time Book of Shadows was released.

The sequel starts off by acknowledging that the events in the first film were all false. A pseudo-documentary feel is quickly adopted to depict the poor residents of Burkittsville, Maryland who have had to contend with Blair Witch groupies since the original film became popular. Soon the documentary style is all but abandoned, however, as director Joe Berlinger chooses to employ a much more traditional method to conveying his story about the latest group of kids to wander into the woods. Mostly shot on professional 35mm film, and with an eerie atmosphere that seems promising at first, Berlinger eschews the first film's attempts to trick the audience into thinking they are watching real events. While there are still some POV video camera shots employed throughout (as in part one), there is never any doubt that this is in fact a carefully designed and fictional movie.

The irony is that Berlinger, who takes over for creators Myrick and Sanchez in the sequel, is actually an accomplished documentary filmmaker himself, though he apparently has no use for those skills on Book of Shadows. Instead, he comes to rely on standard horror movie clichés as we meet tour guide Jeff (Donovan), a local resident who shows our cast of characters the sites from the first film. Along for the ride are Kim (Director), a Goth with an attitude, Wicca Erica (Leerhsen), and Tristen (Skyler) and Stephen (Barker Turner), a young couple who are writing a book on the Blair Witch phenomenon. After a short time in the woods, the group discovers that they have all blacked out for a period of several hours. After much browbeating, it is decided that they should return to Jeff's home to view the mysterious videotape they apparently recorded during their missing hours, but it is clear that something more troubling is amiss.

Berlinger keeps the audience guessing as to what is transpiring, as he continuously crosscuts these scenes with flash-forward glimpses of the characters being interrogated by the police apparently guilty of some crime. An interesting approach, but the problem is that the audience continues to guess at what happened even after the film has ended, since the script never really answers that question. And the "Book of Shadows" title has nothing to do with the movie, just as there is still no clue as to who or what the Blair Witch really is. Yes, there is some creepy imagery here, along with the requisite scares one would expect from a standard horror film, but none of the truly chill-inducing moments from the original film manage to make their way into Book of Shadows. The result is adequately hair-raising from time to time, but nowhere near as noteworthy as its predecessor.

The Book of Shadows DVD features an excellent anamorphic widescreen transfer with Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround audio. Of the several extras on this disc, the most interesting is the inclusion of a CD compilation music soundtrack from the film. On one side of the disc is the regular DVD feature which will play the film and extra features, but the other side is CD-playable which means the soundtrack can be listened to on just about any CD player. Apparently this compilation is composed of music culled from the film's "soundtrack" as well as the entire "score" by Carter Burwell. The three songs come from the bands Godhead, Tony Iommi, and Steaknife, so all you young whippersnappers out there should enjoy this feature. But even an old-timer like myself can see the value in including the film's score in CD form.

The score is also addressed in a "select scene" commentary with composer Burwell. He chirps in on three different scenes, and his comments are interesting even for a musical layman like myself. Finally, the disc's focus on the film's music culminates with an ad for the soundtrack, followed by a video of a "live" performance by the band Godhead.

The audio commentary with director Joe Berlinger runs for the entire feature, and it actually held my attention more than the film itself did. Berlinger is very honest in discussing his displeasure with Artisan Entertainment's interference during the making of the film, and his comments help shed light on what Book of Shadows might have been if not for the studio's imposed cuts and alterations. At the same time, the director seems a bit too arrogant for his own good, and doesn't seem to realize that some of his ideas wouldn't have worked regardless of the studio's meddling. Berlinger also writes the liner notes that make up the short booklet included with the disc.

"The Secret of Esrever" is a neat little feature that begins with a brief video that explains that there are secret images hidden throughout the film itself. The viewer must follow various clues in an attempt to solve the "secret," though I gave up after a frustrated attempt. Riddle or puzzle geeks will enjoy this feature, and I can tell you that it's not a very simple enigma to solve. Additionally, there are several Easter Eggs hidden on the disc at least one of them leads to a trailer for the film.

Also included are extensive cast and crew information and production notes, plus DVD-ROM enhanced features. Through this last bit the viewer can access a bunch of additional features via the Internet. Here you can read a virtual Blair Witch comic book, view never-before-seen director's footage, compare the film to the shooting script, plus access other bits of video and the official Book of Shadows website all of which adds to an already decent DVD package. It's just too bad that the Blair Witch sequel itself doesn't live up to its predecessor's legend.