Perhaps the only frightening thing about this film is that its unintelligent plot was written by not one but two screenwriters. The film revolves around an alchemy scholar named Scarlett Marlow (Perdita Weeks), whose characterisation is incidentally similar to that of video game hero Lara Croft. Just like Croft, Scarlett speaks with an English accent, is versed in many languages, knows martial arts, hails from a prominent background, and is obsessed with hunting artefacts — or raiding tombs if you will.
While tracking a mystery that her father was obsessed with, Scarlett follows a lead on a powerful Philosopher’s Stone, which takes her from a cave in Iran to a museum in Paris. Here, with the very reluctant assistance of romantic interest George (Ben Feldman), she translates a headstone in an attempt to discover where the magical stone is hidden. This riddle on the headstone indicates that her treasure is located in the Catacombs beneath the French capital. The Catacombs, of course, are an underground network of caves where countless bodies were put to rest ages ago.
Filming Scarlett’s adventures is cameraman Benji (Edwin Hodge). As Above, So Below is produced in the style of a ‘found footage’ horror film where the entire film is captured through shaky camera footage, supposedly recovered at a later date. With Benji and George at her side, Scarlett begins looking for guides who can help her with the illegal task of venturing into the Catacombs. At a nightclub, our heroes meet Papillon (François Civil) and his team, who know the caves quite well. Strangely, while Papillon and his friends ask all sorts of questions regarding why Scarlett wants to risk jail time by taking on such an endeavour, not one of them is bothered by the fact that Benji, a complete stranger, is recording their conversation, including the terms of their agreement for the unlawful adventure. In fact, as is often the case with such ‘found footage’ horror films, the numerous characters in the film are perfectly happy to be recorded without wondering why there is a camera in their face.
Perhaps it is poetic that as our heroes sink deeper beneath Paris, the film drowns into mediocrity too. It tries everything from overused horror tactics, such as a phone ringing in the middle of nowhere and the sudden appearance of a piano, to ghostly children and evil cloaked beings. By this point, the actors almost seem desperate in their attempts at selling the plot but sadly the film gives them very little to work with.
More suggestions for horror fans
1. The Blair Witch Project
Three student film-makers disappear while hiking in the Black Hills and the incident is attributed to a local legend, the Blair Witch. A year later, footage of their time in the woods is uncovered and the pieces of the puzzle start to come together.
2. Paranormal Activity
A couple set up video cameras in their house to figure out what supernatural presence is haunting them and why it won’t leave them alone. Psychics and demonologists are called in to try and rescue them from the strange sounds and flickering lights among other bizarre occurrences.
3. The Cabin in the Woods
Five teenagers spend the weekend at a secluded cabin in the woods, when they discover bizarre artefacts in the cellar. Unable to reign in their curiosity, they accidentally awaken a family of zombie executioners who won’t let the kids leave now. Will they be able to escape from the woods?
Rating: 1/5
Noman Ansari is freelance writer and regular contributor to The Express Tribune magazine and newspaper. He tweets @Pugnate
Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, November 2nd, 2014.
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