The Blair Witch Project Principle cast: Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard & Michael Williams Release Date: July 16, 1999

Plot  Summary:  In The Blair Witch Project, three student filmmakers head to the town of Burkittesville Maryland in order to shoot a documentary about a local legend -- The Blair Witch. Unfortunately for the trio, they soon find themselves lost in the woods. Not only are they lost, but they are being taunted from some useable force. As the movie progresses, it is interesting to see the changes in the characters. In the beginning, they are all playful and happy. By the end, they are mere shells of people, scared to the core. The students never did return from these woods, but one year after their disappearance, their documentary footage was found and pieced together to make this movie. 

Interesting Facts:

• The entire movie was improvised. The writers had a basic idea, and left it up to the actors to develop the rest of the story as they went. 

• Caution: many movie-goers experienced nausea due to the shaky camera work. Those who suffer from motion sickness might want to skip this one. 

• This is the first time when the principal actors did the camera-work for almost every shot of a movie.

If you liked this movie, I recommend...

• Curse of the Blair Witch - a fake documentary that was created in anticipation of this movie. It explains the background of the Blair Witch myth in greater detail.

• Häxan - although I haven't seen this movie, it is reportedly the inspiration for The Blair Witch Project.

Blair Witch Links:

• IMDB Blair Witch Page

• Amazon.com's Blair Witch Page -- order the movie here

• Official Site