Book Of Shadows: Blair Witch Project 2

Book of Shadows: Blair Witch Project 2, released in 2000 is the sequel to the successful horror film The Blair Witch Project. The original film was a found footage film, the sequel took that in a different direction, and presents itself as a standard big budget horror film. The film is in addition to being a horror film, is also a critique on how violence in films affects people, and how obsessed fans are influenced by what they see on the screen. The film also discusses the issue of how fans mob the filming locations, and how it impacts the communities in which they are filmed.

This film received mostly negative reviews, though it did turn a profit for the filmmakers. The director is famed documentary filmmaker Joe Berlinger, who is known for his popular documentaries Paradise Lost, about the West Memphis Three. He chose instead of doing a shaky video documentary style film of the original film, which was already starting to be parodied and lose its appeal, that he would do a more legit horror film, with a social commentary. He was forced to add in scenes that took away from his original image for the film.

Now I personally really loved this film, and feel that in overall rewatchability that this film, is actually better than the original. The story is pretty solid, and the acting is mostly well done, though there are definitely times that it feels like a low budget cheap film, which honestly Artisan Films is quite common for releasing. The actors are well cast for the film, and seem to fit their roles quite well. The film honestly doesn't look too bad, and it has a great metal soundtrack that quite well captures the time period of when the film was made, featuring artists like Marilyn Manson and POD. I honestly feel like this movie is underrated, and that it is much better than it is given credit for. Though admittedly there are some pretty weak scenes, like the scenes in the mental hospital, just come across as cheap, rushed, and cheesy. Some of the dialogue also comes across as being cheap, rushed, and cheesy.

The filmmakers choose not to go the route of presenting a "true story" aspect for this film, and also skipped the unique promotion campaign that made the previous film successful. I feel like that is a good choice, because to continue to use such tactics end up just becoming a predictable gimmick and I feel would hurt the film more than help it. Sadly this film has seemed to be forgotten by most people, and hasn't even developed a cult following. The film received generally negative reviews from both critics and fans. I'm not exactly sure what it is about this film that I love so much, it might honestly have something to do with nostalgia, but I often find myself returning to this film for re-watching more than I do the original.

Would I recommend this film? Yes, honestly I feel like more people should watch this film and give it another chance, and try to appreciate it for what it is. It is sad to me how much people seem to ignore this film, because I still feel like the film holds up well today. It is somewhere on the border of a cheap b-horror, and a big budget horror film. The social commentary falls a bit short of films like Natural Born Killers, but follows the same concept. Overall I feel like it is a pretty decent film, and if you ever get a chance to check it out, I highly recommend it.