Cashing in on the love-it-or-hate-it cultural phenomenon of last year, "Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2" is an interesting yet highly flawed horror flick and a cynical marketing ploy.
Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 - R
Starring:
Jeffrey Donovan, Erica Leerhsen and Kim Director
Directed by:
Joe Berlinger
Now playing:
Showplace 12 West
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The film chronicles the misadventures of five "Real World" rejects; the ultra-paranoid former mental patient (Jeffrey Donovan), the squabbling journalistic couple hoping to patch together a Blair Witch-themed book and deal with an unwanted pregnancy (Tristene Skylar and Stephen Barker Turner), the Wiccan hottie with a proclivity for removing her clothes (Erica Leerhsen) and the goth chick who looks as though she just departed her post at your local mall's Hot Topic vendor (Kim Director).
The film is directed by talented documentarian Joe Berlinger, who received a cavalcade of praise for his prior work "Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills," which is far superior, both in scares and straight-up content, to "Book of Shadows," Berlinger's first fictional film.
Primarily void of the savvy which Berlinger brought to the aforementioned film, "Book of Shadows," reverts back to many old horror clichés; alcohol + sex = trouble, "Scream"-like genre references and the increasing body count.
To Berlinger and crew's credit, the film differentiates itself from the original. Instead of rehashing images of some squealing chick trotting through a forest with a handheld camera, the audience is treated to many luscious aerial shots of the Burkittsville woods and a few genuinely scary moments -- all filmed in 35 mm, no less!
The cynicism behind "Book of Shadows" is rather evident, with its pre-packaged metal/alt-rock soundtrack and quick turnaround time. The result is fairly mediocre: the narrative is slightly fractured, the film not entirely cohesive and the conclusion was completely bogus.
That's not to say the film is totally worthless; there are a few thrilling moments to be had and some decent performances turned in by Donovan, Leershen and Director. For those of you seeking out a decent scare this Halloween, "Book of Shadows" could do the trick, but this reviewer would suggest you simply rent some old genre favorites, films that look to scare, not to churn huge grosses.
