Paganism is a broad term that encapsulates various religious and spiritual beliefs that are rooted in nature worship and polytheism. The word "pagan" is derived from Latin and originally referred to rural folk who adhered to traditional, non-Christian belief systems. Over time, paganism has come to encompass a diverse range of indigenous and contemporary spiritual practices. One of the central tenets of paganism is the reverence for nature and the belief that the divine can be found in all living things. Pagans often have a deep connection to the Earth and strive to live in harmony with the natural world. They may engage in rituals and ceremonies to honor and celebrate the changing seasons, such as solstices and equinoxes.
Back on the storyline: there are three university students (nothing too revolutionary yet…), one girl, two guys, who are working on a documentary about the urban legend of the witch of Blair (now Burkitsville) and its forest. At first we see they are filming the men on the street, asking them about the legend. Here we can see the now cult scene: a little baby tries to shut the mother’s mouth when she is talking about the witch – a little hint with a big impact on the forthcoming events!A good half hour later the crew starts the journey in the wild forest – I’m not spoiling anything if I say that they won’t come out later on (as we all know this from the very beginning).
This ending add another layer to the well built propaganda around the release date when the big movie databases and the news were fake as well, concerning the missing persons. If the new generation checks this today, it is almost for sure that the expectation would differ from the experience of the generation who had seen it on the silver screen back in the day.
They may engage in rituals and ceremonies to honor and celebrate the changing seasons, such as solstices and equinoxes. Paganism is also characterized by its polytheistic nature, with practitioners worshiping multiple gods and goddesses. These deities are often associated with specific aspects of nature or human experiences, and pagans may choose to focus their devotion on particular deities or pantheons.
Petite witch 1999
The Blair Witch Project. Is there any avid horror fan who does not know this movie? Well, sure there is a few, but there are more nodding ones who claim this piece is really a true horror movie. What can cause such success in the film industry? If the new generation checks this today, it is almost for sure that the expectation would differ from the experience of the generation who had seen it on the silver screen back in the day. They may find it dated or they simply just got used to this type of movies – we all can admit that this is rightful, since today we are living in a (movie) world which brings found footage films all too frequently. Similar movies are released every year, and in these circumstances The Blair Witch Project cannot give more than ,for instance, Paranormal Activity. But what caused the hype in the first place? If we want to fully understand all aspects, we must sit back to the classroom for another history lesson.
Is there any avid horror fan who does not know this movie? Well, sure there is a few, but there are more nodding ones who claim this piece is really a true horror movie.
What can cause such success in the film industry? If the new generation checks this today, it is almost for sure that the expectation would differ from the experience of the generation who had seen it on the silver screen back in the day. They may find it dated or they simply just got used to this type of movies – we all can admit that this is rightful, since today we are living in a (movie) world which brings found footage films all too frequently. Similar movies are released every year, and in these circumstances The Blair Witch Project cannot give more than ,for instance, Paranormal Activity. But what caused the hype in the first place? If we want to fully understand all aspects, we must sit back to the classroom for another history lesson.
It’s 1999, and most of the horror movies take advantage of their predecessors. Lots of sequels appear: Candyman 2, Children of the Corn 6, From Dusk Till Dawn 2. Their reviews were mixed and not so warm, and they ARE prequels and sequels, which shows lack of creativity.
Of course, we can find some refreshing moments with Stigmata and Sleepy Hollow, but overall no risk is taken, there’s no great revolution… And then comes The Blair Witch Project, and makes an impression which has its effect on movies for decades.
But what’s the movie about? Three young friends are running in the darkness screaming. This sums up the storyline – at least to those who got used to today’s horror movies. But let’s not forget the year. In 1999 the found footage genre wasn’t common at all.
Put ourselves in the 90’s people’s shoes: we are not used to films shot with one hand-held camera, looking like a realistic home-movie . And that is the point.
When it starts it has no credit roll and there is no end credits either. And it was shot with a couple of average cameras. And we got the information about the circumstances of the creation of the footage: „ In October of 1994, three student filmmakers disappeared in the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland while shooting a documentary. A year later their footage was found.”
That’s it. And since the mockumentary as a style hardly existed, what could the cinemagoer think? Most likely that these guys are truly lost in the wild, and they really can hear the weird noises, which indicated that the viewers felt that it could happen to them as well.
But let’s say a few words about the atmosphere! If I say that its has no failure in it, then it suggests that the creators were on point during the whole process. Their goal was to grip the audience and let them believe that all they see is real. It is playing with our nerves more and more, but never goes over the thin red line – there isn’t a moment when the realism could be questioned.
If they were using witches, zombies, vampires or any of the well known horror cliches, all the well built and precisely created concept and feeling would be lost. No one would have believed anything. The creators were aiming to have a feeling which felt real. This is why we see basicly nothing, this is why we have the conversation of the crew for half of an hour. Because „it happened like this”. The footage was found, nothing were touched or edited. And if someone is in doubt that this is very thin and not so much, then I’m pretty sure that this person knows nothing about the cult following of this piece.
Back on the storyline: there are three university students (nothing too revolutionary yet…), one girl, two guys, who are working on a documentary about the urban legend of the witch of Blair (now Burkitsville) and its forest. At first we see they are filming the men on the street, asking them about the legend. Here we can see the now cult scene: a little baby tries to shut the mother’s mouth when she is talking about the witch – a little hint with a big impact on the forthcoming events!
A good half hour later the crew starts the journey in the wild forest – I’m not spoiling anything if I say that they won’t come out later on (as we all know this from the very beginning).
As I mentioned, we basicly aren’t shown too much – only darkness. There is no blood, no gore, no jump scares and no strange silhouettes. We only get impressions that these guys are not alone: statues made of stones in front of the tent, weird wooden sticks and someone was messing with their clothes too! And scary little noises every night…
As it can be expected, no one would return alive at the end…but it is just a wild guess, since we get no confirmation about the crew members’ lives. It is pretty cynical to finish a movie like this: „You really wanna know what is going on? You really wanna? Of course you won’t!”. And admit it: we can’t have hard feelings when a movie treats us like it’s treating Heather, Michael and Joshua.
This ending add another layer to the well built propaganda around the release date when the big movie databases and the news were fake as well, concerning the missing persons. There are people around who still think that for example Heather got lost – it didn’t matter she appeared in other movies since that.
We all can agree that it has started the avalanche, which gives no sign of slowing down – it gets bigger and bigger just like a rolling snowball. Since the original previews and the premiere, it has got a cult status and has its own cult following as well. It had influence on such iconic movies in this genre as [REC] and Paranormal Activity.
Some of you won’t like it, some of you won’t understand why it was great, why it is still great today, but I hope that with my review I could answer some of the questions, and if you haven’t seen it yet, please check it, give it a chance.The Blair Witch Project. Is there any avid horror fan who does not know this movie? Well, sure there is a few, but there are more nodding ones who claim this piece is really a true horror movie.What can cause such success in the film industry? If the new generation checks this today, it is almost for sure that the expectation would differ from the experience of the generation who had seen it on the silver screen back in the day. They may find it dated or they simply just got used to this type of movies – we all can admit that this is rightful, since today we are living in a (movie) world which brings found footage films all too frequently. Similar movies are released every year, and in these circumstances The Blair Witch Project cannot give more than ,for instance, Paranormal Activity. But what caused the hype in the first place? If we want to fully understand all aspects, we must sit back to the classroom for another history lesson.
It’s 1999, and most of the horror movies take advantage of their predecessors. Lots of sequels appear: Candyman 2, Children of the Corn 6, From Dusk Till Dawn 2. Their reviews were mixed and not so warm, and they ARE prequels and sequels, which shows lack of creativity. Of course, we can find some refreshing moments with Stigmata and Sleepy Hollow, but overall no risk is taken, there’s no great revolution… And then comes The Blair Witch Project, and makes an impression which has its effect on movies for decades. But what’s the movie about?
Three young friends are running in the darkness screaming. This sums up the storyline – at least to those who got used to today’s horror movies. But let’s not forget the year. In 1999 the found footage genre wasn’t common at all.Put ourselves in the 90’s people’s shoes: we are not used to films shot with one hand-held camera, looking like a realistic home-movie . And that is the point.When it starts it has no credit roll and there is no end credits either. And it was shot with a couple of average cameras. And we got the information about the circumstances of the creation of the footage: „ In October of 1994, three student filmmakers disappeared in the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland while shooting a documentary. A year later their footage was found.”That’s it. And since the mockumentary as a style hardly existed, what could the cinemagoer think? Most likely that these guys are truly lost in the wild, and they really can hear the weird noises, which indicated that the viewers felt that it could happen to them as well.
But let’s say a few words about the atmosphere! If I say that its has no failure in it, then it suggests that the creators were on point during the whole process. Their goal was to grip the audience and let them believe that all they see is real. It is playing with our nerves more and more, but never goes over the thin red line – there isn’t a moment when the realism could be questioned. If they were using witches, zombies, vampires or any of the well known horror cliches, all the well built and precisely created concept and feeling would be lost. No one would have believed anything. The creators were aiming to have a feeling which felt real. This is why we see basicly nothing, this is why we have the conversation of the crew for half of an hour. Because „it happened like this”. The footage was found, nothing were touched or edited. And if someone is in doubt that this is very thin and not so much, then I’m pretty sure that this person knows nothing about the cult following of this piece.
Back on the storyline: there are three university students (nothing too revolutionary yet…), one girl, two guys, who are working on a documentary about the urban legend of the witch of Blair (now Burkitsville) and its forest. At first we see they are filming the men on the street, asking them about the legend. Here we can see the now cult scene: a little baby tries to shut the mother’s mouth when she is talking about the witch – a little hint with a big impact on the forthcoming events!A good half hour later the crew starts the journey in the wild forest – I’m not spoiling anything if I say that they won’t come out later on (as we all know this from the very beginning).
As I mentioned, we basicly aren’t shown too much – only darkness. There is no blood, no gore, no jump scares and no strange silhouettes. We only get impressions that these guys are not alone: statues made of stones in front of the tent, weird wooden sticks and someone was messing with their clothes too! And scary little noises every night…As it can be expected, no one would return alive at the end…but it is just a wild guess, since we get no confirmation about the crew members’ lives. It is pretty cynical to finish a movie like this: „You really wanna know what is going on? You really wanna? Of course you won’t!”. And admit it: we can’t have hard feelings when a movie treats us like it’s treating Heather, Michael and Joshua.This ending add another layer to the well built propaganda around the release date when the big movie databases and the news were fake as well, concerning the missing persons. There are people around who still think that for example Heather got lost – it didn’t matter she appeared in other movies since that.We all can agree that it has started the avalanche, which gives no sign of slowing down – it gets bigger and bigger just like a rolling snowball. Since the original previews and the premiere, it has got a cult status and has its own cult following as well. It had influence on such iconic movies in this genre as [REC] and Paranormal Activity.
Some of you won’t like it, some of you won’t understand why it was great, why it is still great today, but I hope that with my review I could answer some of the questions, and if you haven’t seen it yet, please check it, give it a chance.
As I mentioned, we basicly aren’t shown too much – only darkness. There is no blood, no gore, no jump scares and no strange silhouettes. We only get impressions that these guys are not alone: statues made of stones in front of the tent, weird wooden sticks and someone was messing with their clothes too! And scary little noises every night…As it can be expected, no one would return alive at the end…but it is just a wild guess, since we get no confirmation about the crew members’ lives. It is pretty cynical to finish a movie like this: „You really wanna know what is going on? You really wanna? Of course you won’t!”. And admit it: we can’t have hard feelings when a movie treats us like it’s treating Heather, Michael and Joshua.This ending add another layer to the well built propaganda around the release date when the big movie databases and the news were fake as well, concerning the missing persons. There are people around who still think that for example Heather got lost – it didn’t matter she appeared in other movies since that.We all can agree that it has started the avalanche, which gives no sign of slowing down – it gets bigger and bigger just like a rolling snowball. Since the original previews and the premiere, it has got a cult status and has its own cult following as well. It had influence on such iconic movies in this genre as [REC] and Paranormal Activity.
The belief in the interconnectedness of all things is often emphasized, with the understanding that each deity represents a different facet of the divine. Another important aspect of paganism is the emphasis on personal spiritual experience and individual autonomy. Unlike organized religions with structured hierarchies, pagans often have the freedom to create their own spiritual practices, rituals, and beliefs. They may draw inspiration from various mythologies, folklore, and historical traditions, adapting them to suit their own needs and preferences. It is worth noting that there is no single, unified pagan belief system. Paganism encompasses a diverse array of traditions and practices, including Wicca, Druidry, Heathenry, and many others. Each of these traditions has its own unique rituals, gods, and mythologies, but they share a common thread in the reverence for nature and a polytheistic worldview. In recent years, there has been a resurgence of interest in paganism, fueled in part by a growing disillusionment with organized religion and a desire for a more personal and intuitive spirituality. Many pagans seek to reclaim ancient wisdom and practices that were suppressed or lost over centuries of religious conflicts and cultural assimilation. Overall, paganism is a multifaceted and evolving spiritual path that honors the Earth, celebrates diversity, and embraces personal exploration and connection with the divine. It provides a framework for individuals to forge a meaningful relationship with nature, the gods, and their own spirituality..
Reviews for "Sacred Places and Sites in Paganism"
1. John - 2/5 stars
I found "What is paganism sumpke" to be a confusing and poorly written book. The author failed to provide a clear and concise explanation of what paganism is, and instead, delved into unnecessary tangents and irrelevant examples. The organization of the book was also lacking, making it difficult to follow the main ideas. Overall, I was disappointed with this read and would not recommend it to others.
2. Sarah - 1/5 stars
In my opinion, "What is paganism sumpke" was a complete waste of time and money. Not only was the writing style dry and monotonous, but the content itself was repetitive and filled with inaccuracies. The author seemed more interested in pushing their own biases and personal beliefs rather than providing an objective overview of paganism. I would advise anyone interested in learning about paganism to find alternative sources, as this book fell short in every aspect.
3. Mark - 2/5 stars
I regret purchasing "What is paganism sumpke" as it failed to meet my expectations. The author's writing lacked clarity and depth, leaving me more confused than enlightened about the topic of paganism. Additionally, the book did not provide any new or unique insights, but rather rehashed commonly known information. I was hoping for a more comprehensive and engaging exploration of paganism, but unfortunately, this book fell short of delivering.
4. Lisa - 2/5 stars
I found "What is paganism sumpke" to be frustratingly vague and superficial. The author seemed more interested in glossing over the complexities of paganism rather than providing a detailed analysis. The lack of references and citations further undermined the credibility of the information presented. Overall, I was disappointed with this book and would not recommend it to those seeking a comprehensive understanding of paganism.