Co-written and directed by John Erick Dowdle (The Poughkeepsie Tapes, Quarantine, Devil), ‘As Above, So Below’ is certainly an interesting found-footage flick, as while at a first mention the film may just sound like another a stereotypical horror, this claustrophobic delve into the caliginous Paris catacombs does actually have some depth hidden beneath its generic exterior. But, unfortunately, even with the story’s intriguing religious imagery/influences, the film soon plummets into clichéd mediocrity, mostly as a result of its bland characters and weak scares.
Plot Summary: When a team of explorers venture into the miles of twisting catacombs that lie beneath the streets of Paris, all in search of the historical ‘Philosopher’s Stone,’ they encounter far more than they bargained for when they realise they have entered into the first of the nine rings of Hell, where visions of their past sins begin to relentlessly torment them…
From a quick glance at the film’s visuals, its understandable why many would see ‘As Above, So Below’ as just another found-footage horror, only this time capitalising on the daunting real-world location of the Paris catacombs, which hold the remains of more than six million people in the small part of a tunnel network built to consolidate Paris’ ancient stone quarries. But, the film’s setting does heavily relate to the story of ‘Inferno,’ a short poem written by Italian poet Dante Alighieri in the fourteenth century, focusing on the tale of man who journeys through Hell guided by the Roman poet Virgil. Even the film’s title plays into this central idea, as the words; “As Above, So Below,” are derived from “On Earth as it is in Heaven,” which is a line from the ‘Christian Lord’s Prayer,’ which begins with “Our Father, Who Art in Heaven…”
Even though their characters are immensely mundane, Ben Feldman, Edwin Hodge, François Civil, Marion Lambert, and Ali Marhyar are all serviceable in their respective roles, delivering the usual screaming, ventilating and panicking performances that occur in most found-footage films. However, while the film’s protagonist; ‘Scarlett,’ is portrayed well by Perdita Weeks, the character herself is noticeably very unlikeable, mostly due to her constant obsession with the ‘Philosopher’s Stone,’ which she places all of her friend’s lives at risk for without question, and its never made clear whether we should actually be rooting for her to survive or not.
The cinematography by Léo Hinstin is more of the usual for this subgenre, providing the viewer with plenty of shaky and out of focus shots as the characters make their way through the almost pitch-black burial ground. This doesn’t distract from what is easily the film’s most impressive (and most ambitious) filming tip-bit, however, which is that the film was actually shot in the Paris catacombs themselves, not in a soundstage. In fact, this was the first production ever to secure permission from the French government to film within the catacombs, which would have been quite a challenge as the series of narrow, winding tunnels with centuries-old skeletons arranged on the walls would’ve had little room for equipment and crew. Yet, this does payoff as the film utilises its location extremely well, always placing its characters in tight areas to insight a feeling of claustrophobia in the audience.
While the film doesn’t feature a complete original score for obvious reasons, one of the strongest aspects of found-footage flicks, sound design, is actually an area where ‘As Above, So Below’ is lacking, as despite the film’s many attempts to feel impactful when the characters dive into water or are nearly crushed by a collapsing ceiling, a vast majority of the sound effects don’t sound as if they are coming from within the catacombs, usually sounding quite evident they have been added in post-production on account of the absence of echo or density.
With a large portion of the film’s narrative being based on Dante’s ‘Inferno,’ the film’s basic structure revolves around the characters heading further and further into Hell, with each character facing a vision of a personal sin from their past. These rings (or levels) in order are ‘Limbo,’ ‘Lust,’ ‘Gluttony,’ ‘Greed,’ ‘Anger,’ ‘Heresy,’ ‘Violence,’ ‘Fraud,’ and ‘Treachery.’ But, outside of the film’s previously mentioned religious symbolism, after the characters leave the initial catacombs, each ring is represented purely through dark empty caverns, which become quite repetitive after a point.
In summary, despite the Paris catacombs being a very compelling setting for a modern horror film, in addition to much of the film’s religious influences making for quite a unique story. I’d still suggest other claustrophobic horrors, like ‘The Descent’ or ‘The Thing’ before ‘As Above, So Below,’ as not only does the film eventually devolve into the standard horror formula without much experimentation, but if you’re unaware of any of the religious context, then I could definitely see the film being fairly forgettable. In all honesty, I feel this film may have been better off as non-found-footage, as I think this would’ve allowed the film to better explore its story and religious subtext. Final Rating: 5/10.
