Heather (Heather Donahue), Mike (Michael C. Williams) and Josh (Joshua Leonard) set out to film a documentary about the Blair Witch, interviewing locals before hiking into the forest. Soon they are lost, the map is gone, and something seems to be following them.
The film never shows its monster. Instead, it builds fear from small things: piles of stones outside the tent, stick figures hanging from trees, strange noises at night. The shaky handheld footage makes it feel uncomfortably real.
The three actors were really sent into the woods, with the directors leaving them notes and scaring them at night. Their exhaustion, anger and panic feel real, especially in Heather's famous tearful apology to the camera.
The shaky camera and constant arguing will put off some viewers, and the first half is slow. But the final minutes are among the most frightening in horror history. The Blair Witch Project proves that what you cannot see is often the scariest thing of all.
