THE BLAIR RABBIT PROJECT (2021)

Available on Blu-ray/VHS from Future Video: https://future-video.tv/ !
Directed/Written by D. Kerry Prior.
Check out the trailer here!!

Trailer: https://youtu.be/SfcroLQE8Fc
Twenty-some years ago, a trio of filmmakers ventured out into the woods to find the truth about a local legend called the Blair Rabbit, after many groups of documentarians went missing and their footage was never found. But the footage this trio took was recently found. This is that footage in this spoof of the classic found footage film, THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT.

Are the actors successfully acting like they aren’t acting?</i
Being a direct knock-off of THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, each of the three documentarians did a decent job of aping their counterparts; Josh, Mike, and Heather. Out of the three, Andrea Fears as Andrea does a dead on Heather impression and is the true standout of this movie. She is the one taking things seriously and I was thoroughly entertained with the way she put up with the antics of the other two documentarians she is saddled with. And while Adam and Kerry are immature and constantly screwing around, in the world of the film, they do a decent job with these roles.

Does the footage found seem authentic and untouched by additional production (which means there is no omniscient editor making multiple edits between cameras or an invisible orchestra providing music)?
Up until a very intentional departure from the found footage format, THE BLAIR RABBIT PROJECT, like THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT before it, uses no musical cues or sound bangs for jump scares. The footage has been inexplicably edited together, but that was the same case with the original, so I’ll allow it.

Why don’t they just drop the camera and get the hell out of there?
Because they are making a spoof of the original BLAIR WITCH PROJECT. But as with the original, the camera is dropped a few times. The reason they don’t stop filming is because the guys are still making the film and not taking what’s going on very seriously…until it’s too late.

Is there an up-nose BLAIR WITCH confessional or a REC-drag away from the camera?
No drag away, but since this is a direct riff off of BLAIR WITCH and [REC} hadn’t been around for all of that yet, but you’d better believe they spoof that famous scene. And it makes for one of the funnier gags in the movie.

Does anything actually happen? Is the lead in too long and the payoff too short?
Unlike the original, there is a reveal of the monster they’ve been hunting for all through the film. It’s goofy, with practical effects, and intentionally shifts the tone of the movie. While this is a departure from the original, it is a fun direction to go and makes for a much more satisfying end. Albeit a ridiculous one.

Does the film add anything to the subgenre and is it worth watching?
While spoofs of THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT have been done before and the film established tropes that the found footage genre can’t seem to get over and leave behind, THE BLAIR RABBIT PROJECT spoofs it well. These three actors are funny and talented. There were genuine moments where I laughed out loud and very few moments of cringe parody as seen in the SCARY MOVIE franchise. I especially loved the way the two guys continued to call Andrea actress and one of the dudes keeps on slowly turning the camera towards her breasts whenever she’s on screen and asking if she would like to make a porno movie in their final moments alive. Yes, it’s immature, but that still doesn’t make it not funny. Sure it’s a goofy premise, but the film gets goofier and goofier the longer I watched and I found nothing wrong with that.