Skip to main content

As Above, So Below (2014) - Movie Review


This movie is about a search for the philosopher's stone and the horrors they face trying to get it.

The movie is shot in a found footage style manner with multiple camera perspective. These types of movies always have that introductory period where characters are introduced and are seen just going about their lives etc and almost always it's boring. This movie however did it in a different manner, using the plot to turn that period into a clue hunt of sorts, and it was interesting.

As most of the movie takes place underground, it had a nice dosage of claustrophobic feeling. Some scenes amplified the effect and were pretty tense. The horror aspect was wasn't that profound though. There were maybe a scene or two that actually gave me the creeps. I did, however, loved how it dealt with hell, was just refreshing and great to something different like this on a very common thing.

Perdita weeks, who acted as the main lead and the one who was after the philosopher's stone, was pretty good. I liked her, and it helped that she looks great. The main dude, who acted as the language expert and the love interest, was also nice. The rest of the cast was OK. In movie like these, you never care for the secondary cast as you know they're just there to be used for deaths.

The movie felt really interesting from the start and it kept that momentum until the final act, which sadly just kinda fell apart and felt too rushed. If they have kept it together here, this movie would have been a good watch overall. Also, there were some jump scares, surprise surprise, which just felt too lazy. I saw them coming a mile away. Stuff like this just ruins the creepy build up and atmosphere.

6.8/10

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Shin Godzilla (2016) - Movie Review

Shin Godzilla is the newest Godzilla film from Toho, the studio behind the Japanese Godzilla films dating back all the way to 1954. This one is a reboot of the franchise, yet again, for the contemporary Japan and the plot is basically what you'd expect; Godzilla arrives and wreaks havoc, all the while the Government tries to defeat it. Since the original Godzilla was inspired by the effects and scars from the WWII Atomic Bombings on Japan by USA, and how destructive and horrifying that power is, this one is similar and was inspired by the 2011 Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, and the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant disaster, all the while being disguised in a monster movie. Godzilla in this movie instills a sense of dread and fear as this indestructible monster with the power to lay waste to everything, a biological TERROR, and I really liked that about this movie. The way its proper form looked, particularly the head, was unsettling and that was the movie's intention, so ...

Spartacus (2010) - TV Series Review (Complete)

Spartacus is a surprising series for me. I first watched it when there were only two seasons out, and back then it was kinda OK for me. Now, after re-watching the first two seasons along with the rest, I found it to be a pretty good series, great even. The series is about Spartacus and how he journey's from being a free man to a gladiator, and then to a leader. The whole series is structured in such a way that their is an overall forward progression with each season focused on a specific part. This results in focus on each area and ultimately they all come together quite nicely. Also, the series is divided into spartacus' related scenes and the roman leaders etc related scenes, developing both sides, side by side, throughout. This not only makes it easy to develop a large number of characters, it also develops both sides and not making it plain black and white. It makes things more interesting, and makes some outcomes way more satisfying. There are A LOT of characters t...

The Hitman's Bodyguard (2017) - Movie Review

The Hitman's Bodyguard stars Nick Fury and Deadpo-I mean Samuel L. Jackson and Ryan Reynolds in a buddy action-comedy where Reynolds is a professional bodyguard who gets tangled up with a hitman portrayed by Jackson.  What worked for me in this movie were the scenes with Reynolds and Jackson together. Their performances were what you'd expect them to give in a movie like this. Not breaking new grounds or anything like that but being their usual comedic personas, and they both were entertaining....well for the most part anyway. They had a nice chemistry, and they worked off each other well. And most of the action scenes were enjoyable, one in particular, which was a long take including Reynolds. The problem with The Hitman's Bodyguard, though, was that it had a lot of other stuff going on as well which just wasn't interesting enough for me to care because not only did it detract from the fun of the main duo, the movie took it way too seriously. It ...