system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
CMV: The Blair Witch Project isn't even remotely scary, and its current position as the gold standard of the American horror genre is a farce (Warning: Spoilers)

**EDIT: View changed.** 

I saw an advertisement for a horror movie today, claiming itself to be "the best American horror film since The Blair Witch Project." 

This left me wondering: why is Blair Witch so widely exalted in the horror genre? When I watched it a few years ago, I was underwhelmed, bemused, and did not experience a single fright. 

Here's my breakdown of the film:

-Daytime: hikers wander around and find creepy little things made by the witch. Trite--we've all seen something like that before. 

-Nighttime: Hikers hear a noise, take the camcorder outside to investigate, see *something* (we can hardly see what scared them because it's nighttime and the camcorder quality isn't great at long distance), camera gets pointed at the ground, person filming takes off running and screaming. 

This cycle repeats several times until the end of the film. The end was somewhat disturbing and left me wondering, but it still wasn't scary. 

TL;DR: Blair Witch is a horror movie in which we see people get scared, but never really get to see what exactly is scaring them. How is it a horror movie at all, and why has it received so much praise within the genre?
gpt
It was completely surprising and original when it first came out.  1999 was before everyone carried around devices that could record video all the time.  The vast majority of horror movies at the time were sequels or remakes of Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm St. etc.  

While the film had a lot of weaknesses, the concept was original.  And as opposed to the "mad slasher" who kills the kids who do stupid things, this felt slightly more "real" and possible.

But, no, it's not the gold standard by any means, just a pretty good film for its time.