As Above/So Below review

AS ABOVE/SO BELOW:

BLAIR WITCH PROJECT GOES TO PARIS!

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** out of 4

UNIVERSAL PICTURES

Explorers go on a terrifying journey underneath the streets of Paris in As Above/So Below

            From director, John Erick Dowdle (Quarantine, Devil) comes his latest horror thriller film and the first film by Legendary Pictures under its new collaboration with Universal Studios, this time instead of people being in fear of sickness or a group of strangers stuck in an elevator together and one of them is the Devil (although that was an enjoyably bad movie), he’s taking the Blair Witch route and created a found footage film with documentary-style camera work and cheap scares. As Above/So Below, while not as memorable or frightening as horror films like The Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity, or the more recent film, The Conjuring, it’s at least an entertaining one and keeps you guessing all the way through.

            The film follows a group of explorers in Paris, France who discover a dark secret that is underneath the streets of Paris, an eternal home of countless souls and bones. While on their journey through the “City of Bones” they soon discover the secret of what the city of dead was meant to contain through hallucinations, flashbacks, moorages, and themselves slipping into madness.

            There are traps, passageways, and twists around every corner, leading up to a terrifying twist you will not be prepared for.

            Overall, As Above/So Below, despite some of its flaws and scares being predictable and obvious, it’s a unique, entertaining, and suspenseful horror film. Packed with shock gore, creative jump scares, and frightening twists around every corner, not to mention it’s a horror film that really keeps you thinking until the shocking finale.

            The visuals, while nothing spectacular are creative and often deliver a fright, especially the scenes where the explorers are running from falling ceilings, demons, possessed people, and even Death itself. It’s definitely better than the horror film that came out a couple months ago, Deliver Us From Evil, but that’s not saying much.

            It’s definitely more entertaining and suspenseful than Deliver Us From Evil, but I still prefer films like The Shining, Evil Dead, and The Conjuring. I felt the scares were more original and they were executed better, but that’s not exactly a bad thing.

            I’m glad I checked this movie out, of course I couldn’t resist because of the film’s trailers and commercials on TV. I had to know what all that commotion was about and now I know why, and it’s quite shocking.

            So if you’re a fan of classic horror, you’re probably not going to get much out of this movie, but if you enjoyed films like The Blair Witch Project, the Paranormal Activity franchise, or even Cloverfield, you’re bound to find something to enjoy or fear, but just remember, once you enter the movie, the only way out is down.