As Above, So Below Movie Review

As Above, So Below (2014)

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Written by: John Erick Dowdle & Drew Dowdle (screenplay)
Directed by: John Erick Dowdle
Starring: Perdita Weeks, Ben Feldman, Edwin Hodge
Rated: R
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Plot
A group of people traverse the catacombs of Paris in search of the Sorcerer's Stone.

Verdict
It's found footage in the worst possible way. So many sequences are unintelligible due to the shaky camera. Half the movie I'm wishing I could understand what is happening. It's unfortunate as the concept is ripe for horror; they are in the catacombs under Paris. Because of the camerawork, the mood is never fully established. While the plot undoes itself towards the end, the lack of clarity is the worst part. Found footage is okay, but stabilize the image so I can at least know what is happening in scenes.
Skip it.

Review
It's part Da Vinci Code and National Treasure with a horror bent. Scarlet (Perdita Weeks), an archaeologist has assembled this team to uncover treasure under Paris.

This movie is disappointing. The concept is great, but the style of shooting makes much of the action unintelligible. I'm sure part of it is budget. If someone drops the camera during a cave collapse you can just show dust in the air instead of the rock crumbling, but this also reduced the effect of many scares. They at least could have stabilized the camera better. The style works a bit better once they enter the catacombs with tight, enclosed spaces.

As Above, So Below - The camera work ruins the movie.

When Benji (Edwin Hodge) is in a tight tunnel crawling over bones on his stomach, he becomes stuck and freaks out. It felt very real and uncomfortable. This contrasts with some truly bizarre encounters that this group dismisses. Sure they act kind of scared, but some of this stuff is just impossible. Part of the movie is each person confronting their past or their fears, but it's such a chore to watch.

The ending undoes the movie. The entire movie is this group traversing the catacombs. In the last few minutes Scarlet backtracks to one of the initial rooms they encountered, forearm smashing a demon in the process, and then comes back in a poorly filmed parkour performance. The movie just loses it, allowing Scarlet to so easily fix everything.

The final scene was kind of neat. The group has gone deeper into the catacombs and finds a metal cover in the ground. This opens into the streets of Paris, defying physics. If they drop down into this tunnel, they will be up on the street. It sounds weird, and it is, but it works. It's one of the few things that works.