Nigel P This follow-up to the ground-breaking film that introduced many of us to the Found Footage concept is a 'fictional re-enactment of events following the events of The Blair Witch Project.' It starts promisingly, with Burkittsville residents being irritated and financially bolstered by the notoriety their town has attracted. Some dialogue is rank, ("There are always naysayers who come here and say … nay.") and the characters are pretty unlikable and stereotypical (we are introduced to Kim (Kim Director) lying back on a grave, smoking, dressed all in black and daubed with heavy make-up – so she'll be a goth then). Erica (Erica Geerson) is a Wiccan and therefore sensitive to whatever 'curse' may or may not be out there. They seem to be a bit stoned and listen to rock music and might possibly have just stumbled off a catwalk. Text book, picturesque teens. A disappointing development after the realism displayed by Heather, Mikey and Josh from the original.This is a major flaw. Main character Jeffrey (Jeffrey Donovan) has a history of hospitalisation and is victimised by the local Sheriff (who seems to have strolled straight out of 'The Dukes of Hazzard'). And yet because of his uncharismatic, postured playing, it is impossible to sympathise with, or feel anything for him or his plight. Tristine (Tristine Ryler) is really the only sympathetic, or realistic character present … And yet, this sequel is undeserving of the critical drubbing it has received. It has some great unnerving moments: the stuttering doll-like creature Tristine sees in the hospital, the image of her drowning her dead, bloodied baby in a stagnant pond (would anyone who suffered a miscarriage during such an unnerving trip seriously then consider continuing with that trip?), the slow drifting into delirium … and the ending, where the group watch the recording they made of themselves and it contradicts their memory of events is a pretty neat way to wrap things up.The temptation could have been to produce another docu-drama, but events here are deliberately stylised in such a way, the audience is in no doubt it is watching a professional production.The locations are excellent and the whole production is very well shot, but I think 'Book of Shadows' is a (perceived) failure because while it is good, it isn't brilliant – and it needed to be brilliant to match the virtually insurmountable success of the first."She's a witch, maaan!"

Jeffery Larrison I literally don't understand why this film was hated. I mean it wasn't great but it wasn't bad. I thought it was good and at least it followed the original one. That's what I look for in a sequel. If it follows the original movie. And like the person I am, I did research on the original and it wasn't true. The directors and the people that made the movie lied to the actors believing that the movie was based on a true which it wasn't. Which in the end doesn't surprise me that they lied. There were some stupid parts here and there but it wasn't bad like what metascore rated the movie and what other users have said. So in the end, it's a 50/25/25 shot, some may like it a lot, some may prefer the original because it was awful, some may think it wasn't bad and I'm part of the 25%. I thought the movie wasn't bad.

Python Hyena Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 (2000): Dir: Joe Berlinger / Cast: Kim Director, Stephen Barker Turner, Tristen Skyler, Jeffrey Donovan, Erica Leerhsen: Whereas The Blair Witch Project used atmosphere to render suspense, this stupid sequel uses nudity, bad acting, and scenes of tourists being gutted. There is also no book in the film so the title is irrelevant, but then again, there is no evidence of a script either. Just a bunch of meatheads obsessed with The Blair Witch Project. They set up a camera and watch strange things happen that they cannot explain. Basically no plot and the story relies heavily on gore and violence. Joe Berlinger can be credited for making things uncertain and stresses minds warped by media influence but the screenwriter is another bust altogether. Special effects are terrific with haunting atmosphere but the acting really sucks. Bad acting by Kim Director, Stephen Barker Turner, Tristen Skyler, Erica Leerhsen, and Jeffrey Donovan. One wonders if they comprehend how embarrassing they look in this foolishness. One of the females sits on the floor in a trance rocking back and forth like a jackass. That is where the people with the white jackets should arrive and take this nut job away. Bypassed theme of evil committed by people whose minds do not fully comprehend with actors who do not fully comprehend how foolish they look in it. Score: 2 / 10

Leofwine_draca A film best described as an "interesting failure", this sequel didn't have me holding my hopes up very much - seeing as just about all reviewers gave it negative marks. In my mind, THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT was one of the scariest films I've ever seen, and any film following that is going to look bad in the process. So I kept my expectations extremely low and went to see this sequel on Halloween. It's a film that borderlines on genius and very nearly manages to be extremely scary, but loses all credibility with a cast of poor performers and some cheap shock tactics. Indeed it's easy to be alarmed by the "jump in your seat" shots of objects smashing through windows or instead be disgusted by some gruesome hallucinations our friends have - a woman rips a man's stomach open with her nails, another girl is seen to eat a dead bird - but the underlying themes in this film are the ones that make it interesting.Looking beyond the obvious shock/gore tactics, this film's main theme is that of perception - and whether we (the audience) or they (the people in the film) are truly seeing what's going on. Clever editing is used to build up to the chilling revelation and the ending was, for me, a very good one. Sadly the true horror of the situation is underplayed in favour of a high dosage of unwanted comic relief, poor acting and a whole slew of supposedly disturbing/horrific moments which actually turn out to be unintentionally funny.Whereas the first film established a back-to-roots documentary approach, this film in turn goes overboard with the exploitation tactics to appeal to a young audience. One character wanders around naked for much of the film while repeated clips of a bloody murder are shown throughout the film. The one interesting character in this film is the tour's guide, an ex-mental patient who finds his sanity breaking down as the film progresses. Played by Jeffrey Donovan, the acting is spot on and he turns in an excellent portrayal. It's just a shame that the others don't live up to his standards. The actress playing the pregnant woman is forced to do a lot of humiliating things and her acting skills are frequently laughable - of course this is not helped by inane dialogue like when she sprouts about dead children looking up her skirt. Her husband is not much better, being as he is a bland puppet, while the Wiccan character in this film I found to be extremely irritating. Finally, the actress playing the goth shows glimpses of a real talent, but for the most part she's simply obnoxious. And don't get me started on the intrusive music used at every opportunity.While it simply cannot live up to the first film, this is more interesting to watch than your typical mindless slasher or gorefest. The film is based around some real deep-seated fears of madness and chaos and with a better execution, I think this may have been as good as the original. Just enjoy all the general weirdness going on as the film messes with your head and let it suck you in. My favourite parts of this film were when the camera footage was being pieced together and revealing some pretty bizarre stuff. The shock ending is powerful too. As a follow-up, BOOK OF SHADOWS: BLAIR WITCH 2 sucks, but it almost stands on its own as a complex, partially successful piece of psychological horror.