Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2

To director Joe Berlinger’s credit, he has created not a true sequel, opting instead to use the mere existence of the cultural phenomenon surrounding the first film as a springboard to create a tidy little supernatural thriller/mystery that requires no more from the audience than a basic awareness of the first film. After a documentary-style montage of Burkettsville, Md. residents, Berlinger introduces us to this episode’s witch fodder—a tour group out to party in the graveyard. While not jump-out-of-your-seat scary, this film more than makes up for the lack of cheap jolts with an overwhelming sense of dread regarding the vagaries of remembrance, which is exhibited especially during the “resolution.”