FREE ESSAY ON BLAIR WITCH PROJECT AN ANALYTICAL ESSAY

BLAIR WITCH PROJECT AN ANALYTICAL ESSAY

Blair Witch Project
An Analytical Essay
Anita Maiezza
Power of film
David Grey
December 5, 2000
The Blair Witch Project is a mock documentary on three film students: Heather, Mike and
Shaun, who go out and shoot their own documentary on the Blair Witch. This Blair Witch
apparently haunts a forest in Burkittsville Maryland and these students are going to find
out firsthand if this rumor is true. Unfortunately this rumor turns out to be fact and
all three characters are eventually hunted and killed by the Blair witch. The scene which
I have chosen to analyze is a short ten second scene near the very end of the movie. In
this scene we see a close up of Mike, from a diagonal angle. Mike is rocking back and
forth and then yawns. This scene is key point were the viewer realizes that there is no
hope for MIke and Heather. The woods are just too vast for these inexperienced students.
In this scene, Mike is wearing his backpack that is bigger than him indicating the the
burden he has to carry. Besides the burden it can also represent all the pressure he is
under at this particular point. The backpack, being larger than he is can be a metaphor
for how small and insignificant he is in comparison to the colossal trees around him. The
fact that the straps are so big and that they wrap around Mike can show how he is
completely engulfed by this pressure, just like he is surrounded by the trees. The
backpack and trees completely overpower Mike, causing him to feel helpless and miniscule,
like a child.
The second image chosen is Mike rocking back and forth, followed by the yawn. In most
scenarios children rock themselves when they are nervous. This clearly hints that Mike,
an average sound technician is no longer himself but rather someone else who is overtaken
by the immensity of the forest. The yawn gives Mike the innocent look that only a child
possesses so the viewer is led to think that Mike is a mere child in comparison to the
forest. A closer look at Mike exposes his beard, contradicting the childlike innocence,
so the element of confusion is a predominant one. (seeing as how Mike and Heather are
lost and confused.) The rocking can also depict an autistic person. In this case it is
evident that Mike has lost his mind and rocking back and forth will bring him serenity.
The trees not only surround Mike in every direction but in this scene they are shot
diagonally. This is definitely not natural, normal and not something that a completely
sane person would see. Evidently Mike is not sane anymore. His world has been turned
upside down. The trees add a sense of confusion and disorientation that Mike, as well as
the audience feels. By looking at the trees in the background the viewer has a chance to
look into Mike's mind and see the current situation through his eyes. Mike has no sense
of judgment left and cannot correctly perceive what is going on around him.
From the moment all three characters enter the woods, they are small compared to the
immensity of the trees and inexperienced, just like children. They have no power over
what is going on and what is going to happen. They, like children do not know where they
are going and lose themselves very quickly as the story proceeds. At the end of the movie
Mike and Heather go on a very confusing and insane search for their partner Shaun. At the
very end Mike and Heather are murdered by the "Blair Witch". This witch made Mike face
the wall while Heather was being murdered, just like the children . 
Bibliography
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