Jinkies! That's a lot of hate for this show!

Velma is an adult animated mystery series streaming on HBO Max. It features the voice talents of Mindy Kaling (who is also the series' executive producer), Constance Wu, Glen Howerton, Sam Richardson, Jane Lynch, Wanda Sykes, Stephen Root, and Frank Welker.

The series centers around Velma Dinkley (voiced by Mindy Kaling) as a brilliant but cynical high school student as she tries to solve a major mystery: who has been killing her fellow classmates? In order to solve this mystery, she'll need the help of Daphne Blake (voiced by Constance Wu), the popular mean girl; Fred Jones (voiced by Glen Howerton), the spoiled rich kid; and Norville Rogers (voiced by Sam Richardson), Velma's best friend who has a crush on her.

So, this show has been gaining a lot of buzz lately, and not in a good way. But you know what they say: bad publicity is also good publicity. At least that's how the writers and executives see it anyway. Even before its premiere the show has garnered some negative feedback. And when it finally premiered, much to no one's surprise, this show was widely hated by everyone. Even critics didn't have a ton of positive feedback for this series.

But ignoring all the negative reception it has garnered I still wanted to go into this series with an open mind and give my personal thoughts into the series. Well, if I'm talking about this show now after having to sit down and watch the whole season, I can confirm that the show is really, really bad.

What I really don't like about this series is the complete bastardization of each of the characters. All of these characters have been written in a way that makes them unrecognizable to their counterparts. Like I said earlier, Daphne is this mean girl archetype, who also sells drugs on the side. She also has this side story about wanting to find her real parents, which feels so irrelevant to the main story. And outside of that, she really has nothing going for her aside from what I mentioned. She's only there to exist in the series, and that's the worst thing you can have for a character.

Fred is the complete opposite of his counterpart. Instead of being a likeable, nice guy leader who has somewhat of a dorky personality, Fred in this series is an entitled, self-absorbed man-child, who can't do anything basic like cut his own food. Also, the series has a habit of bringing up the fact that Fred has a small penis. He's mainly the series' punching bag solely because he's an entitled rich white guy. I mean, I don't have any love for them either, speaking as a white guy myself, but I don't need to be constantly reminded why they suck in every episode.

The only character that is somewhat decent is Norville, whom you may know better as Shaggy. For the record, Norville is Shaggy's real name. However, he is the one character who is written to be extremely different from his counterpart. There are no signs of him being cowardly, no signs that he's a foodie (aside from a snack blog that he has for one episode), and he's written to be this pathetic simp for Velma. He's also, for some reason, very anti-drug. I'm not sure what they're trying to get at with that. I mean there's that whole in-joke among fans that Shaggy is a stoner, but that's the thing, it's just an in-joke. It's not canon with the character.

But the worst offender is the titular character herself: Velma. She comes off as rude and cynical, with an extreme holier-than-thou attitude. However, the whole school and even the whole town seem to hate her and it's not hard to see why. This version of Velma is a complete bitch. She puts herself above others, she mistreats her friends, she's quickly judgmental about everyone, and she's just awful. There's nothing I like about her, and she has zero redeeming qualities. I get that they're trying to make her akin to characters like House or Daria, but the only problem is that, despite their attitudes, House and Daria are likeable characters, and they understand that they're not perfect people. Velma is not likeable, which makes it hard to root for her. It really begs the question why I should be invested in this character if she's so despicable.

What's really strange is that Daphne, Fred, and Norville all seem to crush on Velma (and vice versa) throughout the show, and I can't figure out why. All these characters have nothing but pure venom for each other. Why would any of them have a crush on Velma? Why would Velma crush on any other them? Hell, why would any of them like each other as friends? This four are supposed to make up the Scooby Gang but they don't act like friends.

I should also mention that all the main characters, aside from Fred, have been race-swapped. Velma is Indian American, Shaggy is African American, and Daphne is Asian-American. Honestly, the race changes make no difference to me. Hell, Velma in other incarnations has been either part Asian-American and Latina in the recent animated theatrical film. I only bring this up because the show constantly brings up race as either a commentary or tasteless joke. It's also worth noting that one of the main writers for the series, Charlie Grandy, is white, and based on what I've seen so far, he's completely clueless on how to write a diverse cast of characters.

The worst thing a comedy show can be is not funny, and unfortunately, Velma commits that very sin. Velma's idea of comedy is making meta references to classic tropes and then committing those exact same tropes. This show gets way too crazy with trying to be meta. The tries to act like it's self-aware without any sort of subtlety. Also, remember when I mentioned earlier that Fred in this show has a small penis? Get used to hearing that over and over again.

Now you're probably noticing something is off about my review. I've mentioned the names of Velma, Shaggy, Fred, and Daphne. I bet you're wondering why haven't I brought up Scooby-Doo? That's because Scooby-Doo isn't in the show at all, and the reason for his absence is ridiculous. According to the creators, the reason Scooby-Doo isn't in this show is because they thought the idea of a talking dog was childish and couldn't work in an adult cartoon. Childish? Gee, I wonder what's more childish: a talking dog or a scene where two cockroaches fuck in a high school locker room? Or in the very next scene of the same said locker room, it shows of gratuitous nudity of Daphne and other teenage girls? Yeah, that's not childish at all. Also, did they forget that Brian Griffen from Family Guy exists?

Despite all the negative points I've made about this show so far there are a small handful of positives I can give. The first positive is that the animation does look good. I mean the character designs, the settings, the backgrounds, it all looks very well done. The stand outs are the different hallucinations that Velma tends to have throughout the series. Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that Velma has a tendency to hallucinate about her missing mother as some sort of specter? Why this happens I'm not sure, but when it does happen the animation really shows.

The voiceover performances are pretty good too. I can't comment too much on it because, for the most part, it just sounds like celebrities just voicing themselves instead of putting more effort into, however, with the material they've been given they do a good enough job. I will say that the standout is Glen Howerton as Fred, as at least he tried so sound like a caricature.

Also, I do admit I do find the mystery of what happened to Velma's mother intriguing. Velma's mother is a mystery writer who went missing when Velma was young and has been a driving force for her. It's something new and different for the franchise that I can totally get behind. Too bad it's overshadowed by the main mystery of a murderer killing teenagers and taking their brains, which is the least interesting aspect of the series, and it often gets forgotten in a few episodes to make way for uninteresting and unfunny storylines. Also, too bad I don't care for Velma as a character at all, otherwise the mystery of her missing mother might have been a worthwhile selling point for the series. And if you're wondering if these two mysteries are somehow intertwined, you're absolutely right. Now you don't have to watch the show!

I've seen people actually call this show worse than High Guardian Spice. Personally, I don't think it's that close to being bad. At least Velma has a story. At least Velma has good animation and voiceover. However, much like High Guardian Spice, I'm not sure who the intended audience is. Who was this show made for exactly? Obviously, this show was never intended for kids with the use of graphic violence, language, and nudity. Obviously, it was aiming for an adult audience, however the writers went out of their way to insult said audience by making fun of adults that watch cartoons. Wait a minute, I think I figured it out. I know who this show was intended for. Them! It was made specifically for the writers and producers of this show. They made this show to make themselves feel good. The show was intended for their mindset and their kind of humor.

What makes it more frustrating is that they knew general audiences would hate this show. They knew people will hate watching the show and review bomb it (which btw, that's really childish, don't do this). They knew people will watch it out of spite, which is why it became HBO Max's most watch series, which guaranteed them a second season. Way to go everyone. You played right into their hands. You know, what would ensure them that nobody likes their show? You know what will ensure that they don't get a second season? DON'T WATCH THE SHOW!

Overall, is Velma a bad show? Yes. It's a badly written, unfunny show with completely unlikeable main characters that the audience is forced to watch. Is it the worst thing related to Scooby-Doo? Personally, I think so. I've been a big fan of Scooby-Doo since I was a little kid. It doesn't matter how many times Scooby and the gang solve the same mystery over and over again; it just goes to show that the character, as well as the franchise, still works, and personally I'll never grow tired of it. Is it the worst show ever made? No, I've seen worse. This doesn't even compare to High Guardian Spice, although I'm sure there are some that will argue that Velma is worse than High Guardian Spice, but you know to each their own. Does it deserve all the hate? Probably, but probably not. I'll let you be the judge of that.

Positives:

-Good animation

-Solid voiceover

-Intriguing mystery about Velma's mother

Negatives:

-The writing

-Unlikable main characters

-Meta humor/storytelling

-Lack of subtlety

-The overall mystery

-Complete bastardization of the Scooby-Doo franchise

Final Grade: D

So those are my thoughts on Velma. Have you seen it? What were your thoughts on it? What's your favorite Scooby-Doo show that's way more entertaining than Velma? Please be kind, leave a like and comment, and check out more reviews here on Prose!

Best Quote:

Norville: "You do know what 420 is, right?"

Velma: "Yeah. That's code for adults who still watch cartoons."

#harrysituationreviews #tv #opinion #streaming #HBOMax #animation #ScoobyDoo #mystery #murder #comedy #horror #ThisShowSucks

Valentine's Day is coming up. That means I got a few Valentines themed challenges for everyone.

I didn't go to crazy with my themed challenges this time around, mainly because I just thought of this challenge half an hour ago. Regardless, I have eight new challenges for everyone to try out.

All challenges will end on February 28. Enter one, enter two, or enter in all of these fantastic and lovely theme challenges. If you have any questions about these challenges or what I may be looking for in these challenges, please feel free to send a message and ask me any time. And, of course, don't forget to tag me.

POETRY

Title: Love Poem

Description: Write a poem to your significant other. If you're single, write a poem to someone you are infatuated with.

Word Count: 15-250

Link: www.theprose.com/challenge/13676

ROMANCE/EROTICA

Title: Erotic Prose

Description: If this is your thing, write something erotic. Poetry or story. Any style or format welcome.

Word Count: No limit

Link: www.theprose.com/challenge/13675

NONFICTION

Title: Valentine's Day

Description: What's something you like to do on Valentine's Day, either with someone or by yourself?

Word Count: No limit

Link: www.theprose.com/challenge/13674

REVIEWS

Title: I Love This Movie

Description: What's your favorite romance film you enjoy watching on Valentine's Day? If you got more than one favorite, list them out.

Word Count: 15-300

Link: www.theprose.com/challenge/13673

LGBT

Title: Love is Love

Description: Write a poem or short story involving an LGBT couple.

Word Count: 15-2000

Link: www.theprose.com/challenge/13672

SCIENCE FICTION

Title: Love Across the Stars

Description: Write a short story or poem about a long-distance relationship across different planets or galaxies.

Word Count: 15-2000

Link: www.theprose.com/challenge/13671

HORROR

Title: My Bloody Valentine

Description: Write a short horror story set on Valentine's Day.

Word Count: 15-1500

Link: www.theprose.com/challenge/13670

COMEDY

Title: For All the Single Folks

Description: Being single can suck sometimes, but it doesn't have to be that way. Write a funny poem or story about being single on Valentine's Day.

Word Count: 15-500

Link: www.theprose.com/challenge/13669

#themechallenges #love #romance #ValentinesDay #fun #writing

2023 is kicking off to a good start so far...

The first film to review for the new year is none other than M3GAN. M3GAN is the latest science fiction horror thriller produced by James Wan and directed by Gerard Johnstone.

The story centers a young girl who becomes orphaned when her parents were killed in a car accident during their vacation. She is placed under the care of her aunt (played by Allison Williams), a roboticist for a toy company. Having a hard time trying to connect with her niece, she builds a life-like doll with an artificial intelligence called M3GAN. The girl and M3GAN bond well. Perhaps too well when M3GAN starts to become self-aware and becomes hostile towards anyone that comes between her and her companion.

So first positive obviously goes to the titular robotic nightmare herself, M3GAN (or Model 3 Generation). There's something about robots with that uncanny valley look that utterly creeps me out, and M3GAN is no exception. She's super creepy, but what she does throughout the whole movie is hilarious. I mean, there are moments where she is singing to her ways of trying to kill people. And let's not forget that dance sequence that constantly appears in promos. M3GAN is an absolute riot.

The performances are great too. Everyone does a solid job of selling the idea that this could potentially be a thing in the real world, no matter how hilarious or creepy it looks.

What I think makes the film work is how it explores the theme of human connection. It's a scary thought to allow people, at least children, to be so connected to technology. When the girl gets connected with M3GAN, that's all she devotes her time with. She sees her as a person rather than a machine. At first, you, along with the aunt, are fooled to believe that there's nothing wrong with that. But then you see that she interacts with no one else but M3GAN, not even her aunt. Think about it. We're pretty close to doing this to our own children, having them rely so much on technology as a form of comfort and shutting out everyone in the world in order to help them face their problems.

The only issues I have with the movie is that I feel like that the runtime could have been cut down by at least fifteen minutes. There were a couple moments during the climax where I thought this was where they were going to end it only for it to turn out to be a fake out scare.

Also, I think this movie could have benefited with an R-rating. Despite M3GAN seemingly looking like a movie about a killer robot doll there really isn't a lot of kills in this movie. I know, it was kind of shocking, and a bummer. Think what they could really show off with an R-rating. I bet the kills would be a lot more memorable. I'm sure it was an executive choice to make the movie PG-13 to appeal to a wider audience. However, if an R-rated cut exists, I'd definitely want to check it out.

Overall, M3GAN is really just dumb fun. I found the movie to be stupid but an enjoyable watch. I think even the writers and producers realize how ridiculous the concept is and they have fun with it.

Positives:

-M3GAN

-Performances

-Theme of human connection

-Stupidly fun

Negatives:

-Runtime could be cut down

-PG-13 rating

Final Grade: B-

So those are my thoughts on M3GAN. Have you seen it? What were your thoughts on it? Please be kind, leave a like and comment, and check out more reviews here on Prose!

Best Quote:

David Lin: "This is gonna punch Hasbro in the dick."

#harrysituationreviews #film #opinion #scifi #horror #thriller #robots #dolls #uncannyvalley #dumbfun

Sheriff and Outlaw

Meet at the square at high noon

Bang! One stands, other falls

#haiku #OldWest #gunfight

Happy Holidays everyone!

This holiday season is a good time to sit around, enjoy good company, and watch some Christmas movies. Oddly enough, here's a movie that just right with the season. It's a new movie in theaters right now featuring a ass-whooping Santa Clause. So all you naughty people better watch out...

Violent Night is the action-comedy film directed by Tommy Wirkola (best known as the director of the Dead Snow films), and stars David Harbour, John Leguizamo, Alex Hassell, Alexis Louder, Cam Gigandet, and Beverly D'Angelo. The plot centers around a group of mercenaries led by John Leguizamo, who raid the household of a very super rich and snobbish family and hold the family members hostage. Unbeknownst to everyone is the appearance of jolly ole St. Nick (played by David Harbour), who just happens to be delivering presents. Santa is now caught in the middle of this heist as he fights for his life and to rescue the innocent little girl among the family, who still believes in him.

You know, when I first heard about this movie, and I saw the poster for the first time I could help but roll my eyes like, "oh geez, another killer Santa movie. Didn't we outgrow that?" But then I saw the trailer when it first came out and I suddenly was completely onboard. It's basically Die Hard but with Santa Claus. And it was hella fun to watch.

First positive, I got to give props to David Harbour. He was pretty good as Santa Claus. The movie does a good making you feel for Santa. In the beginning he's drinking away his sorrow while he laments on how people have gotten too greedy and all they do is want instead of giving. But he does build a connection to the little girl that's one of the hostages, which is very touching. Plus, it is so much fun watching him kick ass as Santa.

Seriously, ho, ho, ho-ly shit this movie lives up to its name because it is pretty fucking violent. There's a good amount of blood and even a little gore that Santa himself delivers. The movie does give a little backstory into Santa Claus that helps you buy into the idea that this guy can really do some damage against the bad guys, and probably has no qualms about doing so. He even gets creative with his kills too. I don't think I've ever seen a movie where someone gets stabbed in the eye with a Christmas tree topping, followed up with getting electrocuted. Shit, there's even a moment where it kinda pays homage to Home Alone, but the traps really show how violent that film could have been if Home Alone was R-rated. I mean, yikes. Kevin McCallister could have been a psychopath.

Honestly, this film is just a good fun to watch. It doesn't take itself too seriously and it has fun with the concept of a Santa Claus killing some bad guys. I don't really think it needs to be anything deep or thought provoking. It just needs to be a fun popcorn flick that most audiences can enjoy.

I will say that the only issue I had was that the film is pretty predictable. There's a moment where more guys with guns come in to the film and they hint that they are apparently a kill squad for the rich family. And you can safely assume they're with the mercenaries, which they are. I'm not really spoiling anything at this point because you could probably guess exactly how this movie will go from start to finish, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy it.

Overall, I think I will add Violent Night to my list of oddball Christmas movies to watch each year. It will fit nicely with Gremlins and Krampus. Give it a watch, just so you can end on Santa's nice list.

Positives:

-David Harbour as Santa Claus

-Santa kicking ass

-Holly jolly fun

Negatives:

-Pretty predictable

Final Grade: B-

So those were my thoughts on Violent Night. Have you seen it? What were your thoughts on it? Please be kind, leave a like and comment, have a Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!

Best Quote:

Santa Claus: "Santa's gonna devour them like a plate full of cookies."

#harrysituationreviews #film #opinion #action #comedy #Christmas #SantaClaus

Gender is complicated. That's something we're beginning to realize. At first, we thought it was only a boy or girl. But now we have transgenderism and nonbinary in the mix, not to mention unisex. However, this isn't some new phenomena that's suddenly taking form in the last decade or so. This has been going back since the start of human civilization. Are you familiar with the story of the goddess Ishtar's descent through the underworld and how Ea, the god of wisdom, created an androgynous being named Asu-shu-namir to save her? If not, I suggest reading up on it. It's pretty interesting.

To define gender isn't as straight forward as one would believe. Normally, we would identify gender based on reproductive organs. However, I believe that gender is defined by how one feels about themselves. But even then, I'm not a hundred percent sure if that's accurate. Perhaps there really is no true definition of gender. I'm not entirely sure, but then again, perhaps it's really none of my business. If one identifies as man, woman, or nonbinary, then so be it. It is not my place to judge, nor my concern. As long as they're happy with themselves that's all that matters.

Unfortunately, there are always going to be those who don't understand or refuse to understand that demoralizes people who are different. These people use their governmental positions and their church sermons to decry and shame those that don't identify with their sense of 'the norm'. If you're one who identifies that there are only two genders, I understand your position, but unfortunately, it's not that simple. And to remain ignorant of that fact is sad. If you're the kind of person that believes that transgenderism is the result of some sort of physiological or psychological reasoning, that sort of thinking is what demonized innocent people for trying to be comfortable for who they are. Keep in mind that we believed (and some still believe) the same thing about homosexuality and the idea to "fix" them was conversion therapy, which led to many LGBT+ people getting abused both physically and psychologically.

The bottom line is whatever you identify as learn to love yourself and don't be cruel to others about it. And for everyone else show some compassion and humanity.

The world is ever changing and evolving. Time to evolve with it.

This is a sad day for all comic book fans. Kevin Conroy, a voice acting legend who has been the definitive voice for Batman for over thirty years, has passed away at the age of 66. He first voiced the Caped Crusader back in 1992 in the hit animated series Batman: The Animated Series, and since then he has been the voice for the character on other DC projects such as the Justic League animated series and the Batman: Arkham video game series.

This man, his voice, was something that's been attached to me since childhood. It's his Batman that I always hear in my head whenever I'm reading a Batman comic. That's how much of an impact he had on me. I actually got a chance to see him at Wizard World a few years back and just seeing the man and hearing his voice was a once in a lifetime experience. He loved his work, and he loved his fans.

Anyone can argue who the best live action Batman is. Adam West or Michael Keaton. Christian Bale or Ben Affleck. But, for me, the truly greatest Batman was always, and shall always be, Kevin Conroy. He was my Batman. He will forever be my Batman.

"Everyone is handed adversity in life. No one's journey is easy. It's how they handle it that makes people unique."

-Kevin Conroy (1955-2022)

#rip #restinpeace #tribute #DC #voiceacting #Batman

I want to thank everyone who have participated in this year's horror themed challenges. This turnout has been very good. And I especially want to thank those who participated in my horror challenge "The Greatest Horror Story Ever Told". We got some great, spooky stories here. But as Connor MacLeod said in Highlander, "there can be only one".

It was a difficult decision, but I have chosen a winner: JourdinR for their story, "The Untold Story of Sarah Lavender".

Congratulations. I recommend everyone to get a chance to check out this spooky story:

www.theprose.com/post/521931/the-untold-story-of-sarah-lavender

And for a prize I left a generous donation to their story. Congrats again. Here's hoping for more horror stories from everyone for next year's horror themed challenges!

Happy Halloween everyone! And what better way to celebrate one of the best holidays of the year is to review a horror movie. I think it's high time that I reviewed this Halloween classic.

The Blair Witch Project is a 1999 found footage horror film directed by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez. The story centers around three amateur film students who embark on quest to film a documentary about the Blair Witch, a local legend of a malevolent ghost that is said to haunt the Black Hills woods of Burkittsville, Maryland. The three become lost and find themselves hunted by the very being they were trying to document. They disappeared and what we the audience see is supposedly what they filmed that may clue in on their fates and the terror of the Blair Witch.

What can be said about this film that hasn't been said before? The Blair Witch Project was the film that was the grandfather of all found footage films, helping kickstart the subgenre that would lead into films such as Cloverfield, Quarantine, and of course Paranormal Activity. Obviously, it wasn't the first found footage flick ever made. Cannibal Holocaust actually had that beat by about a decade earlier. But it certainly was the one that helped cement the subgenre into existence.

Over the years people have been pretty divisive on this film. Some love it, other hate it. Some praise it as one of the greatest horror movies of all time, while others call it a shaky cam mess. So, what's my opinion on one of the foundations of found footage?

The first positive I got to give is the atmosphere. The woods can be a creepy setting and this film turns the creep factor up to eleven. There's a ton of footage during the daytime while the characters are wandering around lost and it's pretty spooky. There's a ton of footage during the night where you hear strange noises and you're not sure what that is, much like the characters themselves, and it's spooky. The biggest criticism I've heard people say against this movie is that you never see the actual Blair Witch on screen. When the cast were running out of their tents there's a moment where Heather screams, "What the fuck was that?!?", indicating that she saw something, but it isn't very clear. Originally the camera was supposed to film a brief scene where you can see a figure hovering in the air, most likely the Blair Witch. The shot wasn't clear enough and it was too dark to tell, yet the filmmakers kept it in the final production. Personally, I don't see that being a problem. It's unknown and the unknown is terrifying. Not knowing or not seeing something is far scarier than throwing something on screen. It allows your mind to play tricks on you and come up with your own imagination to what Heather may have saw. Maybe she did see something. Maybe she didn't. We'll never know, and that's what makes it scary. It's something that adds a layer of unease to the movie.

The film also had one of the best marketing gimmicks ever composed. This was one of the first films to use transmedia storytelling. What is transmedia storytelling, you ask. This is when you use multiple forms of media to tell a larger story. Before its release, The Blair Witch Project had a website that contained a ton of lore about the Blair Witch and the town of Burkittsvile. Keep in mind that this is all fabricated for the sake of good fiction, but you couldn't tell that during the late 90s. They also came up with a couple of fictional documentaries to further build on the legend of the Blair Witch. One of them, which is more relevant to what happens in the movie, is The Burkittsville Seven. This is a fictional true crime documentary about the disappearance and murders of seven children in the 1940s. According to the lore an old hermit named Rustin Parr took these children to his house in the middle of the Black Hills woods and killed them one by one. As he was doing the killings, he had one of the children face the corner of the room and ordered him not to look at him. When he was arrested, he confessed to the murders and said that a voice in his head (i.e., the Blair Witch) kept telling him to do it or else it wouldn't leave him alone.

This leads to what makes the movie work: the sense of realism. All the outside material helped heightened the lore and realism. And when you're watching the film, seeing everything play out, it all feels very real. Much of the dialogue was all improvised. Only a small percentage of the film is scripted, which makes me wonder which parts were scripted. When the actors are freaking out or cussing at each other, they really are doing that. The camera they use isn't high tech like a Hollywood camera. It's more or less your basic home video camera. It's shot with poor quality, and it looks amateurish because it was meant to look like that. These three characters aren't professionals. So, the way the movie was put together looks unprofessional, but it also looks very real.

Now some might not think this is appealing or entertaining, and I get that. However, I feel that this works in the film's favor. I feel that many found footage films seem to forget that aspect. They forgot to make them feel real. Nowadays they feel too Hollywood with all the better-quality cameras and visual effects. The Blair Witch Project had none of that, making for a much more grounded and believable experience. I wouldn't be surprised with there were some people back in 1999 who thought the film was real only to find out later that it's complete fiction.

Of course, I gotta talk about the climax and ending of the film because that's what everyone seems to remember most about it. I have to say it is arguably one of the best endings for a horror film too. Everyone who has seen this film know what I'm talking about but if you haven't seen it obviously, I'm gonna discuss the ending. So, spoiler alert. Skip ahead to the next paragraph or so if you don't want to be spoiled by the ending.

Moving forward, towards the end, one of the friends, Josh, suddenly goes missing. Both Heather and Mike are unsure what happened, as with the rest of the audience. What they do find is a piece of Josh's clothing bundled together. They open it to find the only bit of gore in this movie: blood, some teeth, and, I think, a piece of an organ but I'm not sure of what though. This is the 'shit just got real' moment of the movie. This also leads to the famous scene where Heather is talking to the camera and it's a close up shot of her eyes and that ugly ass snot bubble that's leaking from her nose.

After hearing what sounds like Josh being tortured, Heather and Mike come across a large, old, decaying house in the middle of the woods, likely the house that belonged to the aforementioned Rustin Parr. The pair go in only to find bloody handprints of children decorating the walls. Eventually they get separated with Mike getting attacked by something offscreen. Heather makes her way to the basement to find Mike standing at the corner of the room until she is attacked from behind and the camera stops filming, leading to the end credits. It's one of the most memorable and suspenseful endings to a horror film I've seen in decades.

Personally, my biggest criticism against the film are the characters. Now the actors aren't bad at all. It's just there is stuff they're characters say and do that doesn't exactly make me feel sorry for them. Much of the movie they spend time yelling at each other and blaming each other for getting lost. Now, this does make it very believable and would look like a realistic scenario that real friends would do in a situation like this. However, it makes it a little grating to sit and watch them argue and cuss at each other over and over again. Also, everything that starts happening to them is mainly their fault. One example is when the trio are lost in the woods and argue amongst themselves because their map goes missing. Then Mike reveals he kicked the map out of frustration. Not to mention after the trio encounters the stick figures in the woods, it is later revealed that Heather took on of the stick figures. Why? I'm not sure and we never see Heather take one of these figurines or see a figurine in her bag that validate what they're saying. But let's just say things escalate from bad to worse when she did this. Honestly, they did this to themselves and what happens to them is kind of their characters fault.

Overall, I can see why The Blair Witch Project is regarded as one of the most memorable horror films to come out of the past two decades. Now I wouldn't say that the film scared me during my first viewing. Creeped out, sure. But I personally didn't find it scary. And sure, what doesn't scare me will probably scare others and vice versa. However, over the years I have developed a deep respect for this film. It did set the groundwork for other found footage films. It had the best marketing ploy. And it was competently well put together with what they had. And it grossed over $200 million worldwide on a $60,000 budget. So, I can definitely see why this film is highly praised and highly regarded as one of the best horror films made. I would definitely recommend giving it a watch some time just for the experience. Just make sure you don't knock over any rock piles or take any stick figurines.

Positives:

-The atmosphere

-The unknown

-The realism

-The climax

Negatives:

-The characters

Final Grade: B

So those are my thoughts on The Blair Witch Project. Have you seen it? What were your thoughts on it? Love it? Hate it? Please be kind, leave a like and comment, and have a fun and safe Halloween!

Best Quote:

Heather Donahue: "I'm scared to close my eyes; I'm scared to open them."

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