【Gary Eberhart Archives】

TORONTO -- Genre-filmmaking darlings Adam Wingard and Gary Eberhart ArchivesSimon Barrett return to the Toronto International Film Festival with Blair Witch, a disappointingly redundant found-footage sequel to the original movie that unfortunately finds the gifted duo behind The Guestand You're Nextgetting lost in the woods together.

It's been a rough chase. In 1999, The Blair Witch Projectbreathed new life into both horror and the indie scene by inventing the found-footage subgenre, which is now on its last legs following six Paranormal Activitymovies. The following year, the awkwardly titled sequel, Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, followed its own path in ditching the troublesome format, but it was so bad that it put the franchise on ice for 16 years.

This new Blair Witchpretends Book of Shadowsnever happened (fine by me!) and serves as a direct sequel to the original movie. The new film follows James (James Allen McCune) as he searches for his sister, Heather, who disappeared in the first film. James and his gal pal Lisa (Callie Hernandez) find a video on the internet that offers a small glimmer of hope. After all these years, is it possible Heather could still be alive out there in the woods?

However small the chance of finding her is, James has to take it, so he, Lisa and their friends Peter (Brandon Scott) and Ashley (Corbin Reid) head into the woods in Burkittsville, Maryland, where they're joined by Lane (Wes Robinson) and Talia (Valorie Curry), the sketchy local couple who posted the aforementioned video online.

From there, we're treated to a rehash of all the things that made The Blair Witch Projectstand out, such as spooky stick figures, ominous piles of rocks, creepy handprints, shaky-cam scenes of screaming actors running through the woods from a hard-to-see villain, and of course, lots and lots of jump scares. In 1999, all of this felt fresh and exciting. But aside from one claustrophobic sequence set in an underground tunnel, there's nothing innovative to distinguish Blair Witchfrom the first film. It feels less like a sequel than it does a remake, which is why Blair Witchis so frustrating. Somehow, Wingard manages to do less with more resources.

For example, the Blair Witchensemble is twice the size of the original, but only half as effective. We cared about Heather, Josh and Mike so much more than these rather anonymous and annoying characters, who prove difficult to root for. I wasn't expecting awards-level performances here, but only Hernandez and Robinson make a lasting impression, and poor Curry (so good in American Pastoralhere at TIFF) is completely wasted in a thankless role.

When the lights came up, I was torn, because my body and my mind disagreed about the merits of Blair Witch. I know the film worked on a visceral level, because I was squirming in my seat during several scenes and chuckling during some particularly gruesome self-surgery. However, the whole time I couldn’t shake the familiar feeling that I’d seen all of this before.

I mean, how many times can we hear a branch snap, followed by a character asking, "did you hear that?" Yes, we allheard it. How many old doors can we see slam shut? How many times will the walkie-talkies crackle? I won't belabor the point, because I think you get my drift.

Blair Witchis truly a missed opportunity for Wingard and Barrett, who had a chance to play with a mythology that, whether you like it or not, was ripe for reinvention. Unfortunately, they play it too safe and rely too much on the film's impressive sound design to do the heavy lifting. Even Wingard seems to grow tired of his own jump scares, having a character say “stop doing that!” after one of them.

There's no doubt that Wingard is a talented director who can create suspense, as he frames the jumpy action in such a way that you’re never sure what’s lurking just outside the frame. That said, there are too many cameras in Blair Witch, not to mention some lapses in logic that are hard to overlook, such as why a character would risk her life to pull a crashed drone from a tree.

Lionsgate likely hopes to start a franchise with Blair Witchnow that the Twilight,Hunger Gamesand Divergentseries have ended, and while this film represents a considerable improvement over the last 'sequel', Book of Shadows,it fails to take the brand to the next level. If the found-footage genre is going to continue, filmmakers need to evolve and find a new approach. Look to the low-budget film Unfriended, which unfolded in real time on a computer screen, as a model.

Wingard and Barrett just don't take enough chances with the material, giving us too many jump scares and not enough interesting characters. Not only do they neglect to nurture their good ideas -- for example, Lane seems to be experiencing time differently than everyone else, but the notion is dropped almost as soon as it’s introduced -- but their biggest mistake is that they never really give us a good look at the Blair Witch herself. I expected more from these filmmakers, who I hold to a high standard due to my fondness for their past work. I think the Blair Witch brand still has untapped potential and wish they'd challenged themselves harder to reinvent it.

Developed, shot and marketed in secret as The Woods, the title twist revealed this summer at Comic-Con ultimately goes to waste, as Blair Witchfails to prove worthy of the grand gesture. The film will hardly haunt Wingard and Barrett's careers, as it's poised to be a hit, but this is not the film they'll be remembered for by genre fans. This Blair Witchjust can't hold a candle to the original.