Set twenty years after the original Blair Witch Project, James Donahue and some of his friends travel to Burkittsville, Maryland to uncover the mystery of his sister Heather’s disappearance.

Love it or hate it, The Blair Witch Project was a bonafide phenomenon. It revolutionized the found footage subgenre, showed off the tremendous power of viral marketing, and proved that you could make an intensely frightening movie on a microscopic budget.

However, attempts to turn Blair Witch into a franchise have failed horribly. Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 was an incomprehensible mess and a third film has been in development hell for over a decade. Well, here comes indie horror darling Adam Wingard (You’re Next, The Guest) to the rescue, directing a new Blair Witch film that hopes to bring some of the old magic back. Does it succeed? Not really.

I was very interested in seeing a proper sequel to The Blair Witch Project. Despite its rough edges, I thought it was a suspenseful film and an inspiration to aspiring filmmakers like me. Sure enough, this new Blair Witch shows flashes of that old brilliance. Adam Wingard directs the film well, utilizing the tired found footage trope to scare the audience rather than merely save money. It’s very claustrophobic, with only six characters, and there are plenty of scares that left me on the edge of my seat. Blair Witch also brings subtle atmosphere to the forefront, and Wingard times most of the scares just right.

However, Blair Witch all too often feels like a bland rehash of its namesake. Even though it’s creepy at times, it plays its cards too close to the vest, not bringing nearly enough newness to the table to stand out from the pack.

The plot is a beat for beat copy of the original, lacking any real surprises and being utterly predictable. I also feel they wasted some big opportunities. The Blair Witch is a mysterious entity and a lot can be done with it. You can build on an already interesting mythology, and they didn’t here. Rather than being a true sequel, Blair Witch is more of a greatest hits compilation that deceives you into thinking it’s brand new.

Blair Witch is by no means a terrible movie. It’s got some scary moments and works as a tribute to a not-so-old classic. But as a movie, it doesn’t quite work because it’s content to stick to the horror formula and never goes off in its own direction. Horror fans will probably eat it up, but if you’re just looking for a good time at the movies you can do much better.

Grade: C+