Customer Reviews

Blair Witch: Book of Shadows

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While the "BW2" movie will probably never gain the same affection in the hearts of the public in the same way as it has with Blair Witch fanatics, this book should help push it a tad more in that direction by explaining a thing or two. Like the previous bestselling "Blair Witch Dossier", it is full of "real" newspaper clippings, evidence, etc. which are both fun to browse through and essential reading for diving even further into the film itself.

One of the things I love about both books is that D. A. Stern really develops the characters and allows them to all truly shine. He's really having a blast here, and you can just imagine him putting all this together while giggling to himself and thinking, "Man, is this FUN or WHAT?" I only wish I could have had such an opportunity myself to create something like this for someone.

I don't want to give away too much, I'll just list one detail which won't give away any secrets: an excellent example of how this volume doesn't merely "present" the characters but actually adds to their personalities is on pages that are supposed to be Kim Diamond's "Tour Questionnaire" that she filled out when signing up for The Blair Witch Hunt (you recall her, the cool Goth chic psychic). For the following choices, here's how she answered:

EMAIL: gothgrrl@coolmail.com (NOTE: Yes, it's fake. -C.C.)
OCCUPATION: Genius

SLEEPING BAGS AND TENTS ARE AVAILABLE FOR RENTAL TO ALL OVERNIGHT TOUR GUESTS AT A NOMINAL COST: YOU CAN SUPPLY YOUR OWN, IF DESIRED.
[ ] I PLAN TO BRING MY OWN CAMPING GEAR
I NEED TO RENT A
[ ] SLEEPING BAG
[ ] TENT
(She leaves the above choices blank, and instead writes here "What's a tent?")

MEALS ARE INCLUDED IN THE COST OF YOUR TRIP. PLEASE LIST ANY SPECIAL DIETARY REQUIREMENTS IN THE SPACE BELOW:
(She writes "Beer".)

ANY OTHER COMMENTS?
(She answers, "What do we hunt with? Should I bring a gun?")

You get the idea. The book is filled with such personality details which really make it all the more believable and make you really want to believe that these characters are *real people* as opposed to mere cyphers set up in a spook film.

And now that I look at it, I can't help wondering what the actual actors think of it, especially since this is all using their real names just as with the first movie. I get the impression that they must get a kick out of it all and joke about it quite a bit (I can just see them asking friends, "Do I look particularly DEAD to you this morning?").

Whether you enjoyed "BW2" as much as I did or were confused enough to the point that you simply want some answers, check this one out. You'll dig it immensely.

Oh, and I do want to mention one last thing. A big one.

Again without giving away anything, I do want to clarify something for the cynics of the film concerning the biggest major gripe they've had regarding the movie: yes, you WILL find out within these pages exactly what "The Book of Shadows" is. But that's all I'll reveal. Buy it and you'll see.

But in the meantime, I'll be cheerfully singing, "I know something you don't knnnnoooow......" ;)

This book is a companion piece to the second Blair Witch movie. It gives some more information left out of the film. It becomes a little annoying at times because like the movie, it never has a definite answer. Like THE BLAIR WITCH DOSSIER, this is really a further investigation into what happened. It reads like a special episode of UNSOLVED MYSTERIES. Only at the end when it reprints an old story that reads like a SHERLOCK HOLMES story does it become weak.

Not a novelization but more like a scrapbook of articles, emails, etc. regarding the characters in BW2, it does offer some insight on the muddled plot of the movie and the characters, but the problem is that it's not nearly enough! Many questions are still to be resolved regarding the Blair Witch herself and her powers. And nothing is said about the Wiccan girl character that in the movie "communes" with the Blair Witch. The best part of the book is the inclusion of an alleged pulp magazine story which mentions the Book of Shadows (which was nowhere to be seen in the movie by the way). In short, interesting but lacking somewhat.

This book isn't really a story book like I was hoping for. Its pretty much a scrap book. Mostly pictures and not a lot of material to read. I'm a fan of both Blair Witch movies and there is a pretty cool section that breaks down all main charactors. Only worth it if you are a big Blair witch fan.

Despite what is stated below, this book is in NO WAY a novilization. In fact, it's a great companion piece to the film that really enhances the experience of Blair Witch 2 by providing tons of background details, much in the way the "Curse of the Blair Witch" TV documentary did for the first film. If you want to learn more about the characters of Blair Witch 2 through various "news articles, e-mails, files" and such, this is the place to find copies of those fun items.

Stern's BLAIR WITCH 2 tie-in quite compellingly continues the threads of the BW mock-mythology. Unlike the actual film, Stern insists the events in THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT were real, and that the three documentarians are "still missing." Unfortunately, since BW2 is supposed to be a "re-enactment of true events," this means that the people in the movie are only actors. So, why are their photos presented in this book as if they're the "real" suspects in the so-called Black Hills Murders. Oops! Did you hear that? That was the "suspension of disbelief" crashing down around all this book's readers. This one flaw basically RUINS the whole book. Too bad, because the book is otherwise a pretty good work of fictional non-fiction.

The first Blair Witch book was a great companion piece for the movie. Extra little bits of creepiness that added to the whole mythos. For example, Rustin Parrs house is in ruins. So the three were running around a ghost house. This new book is the same type of thing. Although like the movie, it seems like it was more quickly thrown together with less effort. If you watch the Shadow of the Blair Witch special, you wont really get anything new out of this book. Just more police notes and evidence. If you havent seen the special and enjoyed the movie, pick this book up. Like the first one, a pretty cool companion.

All this bbok is a novelization of the movie if you don't want to see the movie buy the book