Horrorpalooza 2014: "As Above/So Below Creeps Up on DVD and Blu-Ray

Universal Studios recently released information for the upcoming DVD and Blu-Ray release of "As Above/So Below". The film stars Ben Feldman ("A to Z," "Mad Men"), Perdita Weeks (The Invisible Woman, "Lost in Austen"), Edwin Hodge (The Purge: Anarchy, Red Dawn) and Francois Civil (Frank, "Rosemary's Baby") and is the latest from director John Erick Dowdle (Quarantine, The Coup).

Special features on the DVD and Blu-Ray include "Inside As Above/So Below" featurette. "As Above/So Below" hits stores on December 2nd.

Press Release:

A daring descent into the legendary catacombs of Paris reveals a terrifying, centuries-old secret in the psychological thriller As Above/So Below, coming to DIGITAL HD November 18 and Blu-ray™ Combo Pack and DVD December 2 from Legendary Pictures and Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. As Above/So Below takes audiences to the gates of hell and beyond in an unforgettable journey into the human psyche to reveal the personal demons that come back to haunt us all.

Archaeological adventurer Scarlett (Perdita Weeks) and language expert George (Ben Feldman) lead a team of intrepid explorers on a search for the fabled Philosopher's Stone in the eerie labyrinths beneath the streets of Paris. Lost in the twisted and claustrophobic maze housing the mortal remains of more than six million souls, they discover the lost secrets hidden in the catacombs for generations, plunging them into hell for a nightmarish ordeal with a shocking conclusion.

As Above/So Below stars Ben Feldman ("A to Z," "Mad Men"), Perdita Weeks (The Invisible Woman, "Lost in Austen"), Edwin Hodge (The Purge: Anarchy, Red Dawn) and Francois Civil (Frank, "Rosemary's Baby") in a mind-blowing exploration of madness, mayhem and malevolence. The film is directed by John Erick Dowdle (Quarantine, The Coup) and produced by Thomas Tull, Jon Jashni, Drew Dowdle and Patrick Aiello, with Alex Hedlund executive producing.

Miles of twisting catacombs lie beneath the streets of Paris, the eternal home to countless souls. When a team of explorers ventures into the uncharted maze of bones, they uncover the dark secret that lies within this city of the dead. A journey into madness and terror, As Above/So Below reaches deep into the human psyche to reveal the personal demons that come back to haunt us all.

The Blu-ray™ Combo Pack includes a Blu-ray™, DVD and DIGITAL HD with UltraViolet™.

Blu-ray™ unleashes the power of your HDTV and is the best way to watch movies at home, featuring 6X the picture resolution of DVD, exclusive extras and theater-quality surround sound.
DVD offers the flexibility and convenience of playing movies in more places, both at home and away.
DIGITAL HD with UltraViolet™ lets fans watch movies anywhere on their favorite devices. Users can instantly stream or download.

Bonus Feature on Blu-Ray™ and DVD

Inside As Above/So Below

"As Above, So Below" Review - Written by Jim Herling

I'm really not a fan of "found footage" movies. I find the whole genre and all the tropes and trappings that go along with it tired and boring. Every now and then, though, a movie in that style will come along and play with the genre, do something new and fresh with it to make it enjoyable again. Or, lacking that, while it might not do anything different, the movie might just be so damn good that it rises above the faults of the genre. From the trailers, I had high hopes that As Above, So Below would fit one of these two categories.

Disappointment really is a bitter pill to swallow, especially in hell.

Basically, As Above, So Below (directed by John Erick Dowdle who also co-wrote worth Drew Dowdle) is part Indiana Jones and part The Descent, but in POV. It starts off with Scarlet Marlowe (Perdita Weeks, a fairly compelling lead) an archaeologist and explorer, in a cave in Iran that is about to explode, as she tries to finish the work that caused her father to take his own life: finding the Flamel Stone (aka the Philosopher's Stone). She finds a statute of a bull with something called the Rose Key carved into it in the cave before it blows up and from there, with her cameraman Benji (Edwin Hodge) documenting it all, the chase is on, Dr. Jones style. They go to Paris and recruit her ex-flame George (Ben Feldman, a likeable co-star and the only character with even an iota of common sense) to help, and they begin deciphering maps and tracking down clues until they realize the stone is in a walled-off part of the Paris catacombs. A random stranger tells them who can guide them to that area and then disappears when they aren't looking, something that is never explained and is the harbinger of just how far off the rails the up-til-now movie will go.

They find and hire the guide in question and his two friends, all three of them young French explorers who hang out in the catacombs for fun, and promise them they can keep all the treasure they expect to find with the stone. Despite sensibly not wanting to go, Ben accompanies them, and once the company hits the catacombs, the movie goes from fun and interesting to just another "found footage" schlock fest filled with shaking camera shots, barely glimpsed threats, telegraphed scares and a ridiculously jumbled plot that involves defying the laws of physics completely. The idea of whether or not they found a way into hell is left dangling, with whether it's actual hell or a mystical place that makes people confront their own personal hells never explained. Also, the idea of if it was accidental or if they were led there for some unexplored reason, a la the disappearing man who directed them to their guides, is never addressed either. There are other plot hole examples, but those are the most glaring. This flick left me hanging, no real closure or even sense to be found by the end, but the cast was decent and I enjoyed the first half of the movie, so I give it 2.5 stars out of 5.

Official Trailer for the Upcoming Terrifying Thriller "As Above So Below"

Universal Pictures recently released the official trailer for their upcoming release "As Above So Below". The film is directed by John Erick Dowdle (Quarantine, Devil) and stars Perdita Weeks, Ben Feldman, Edwin Hodge. "As Far So Below" hits theaters on August 29th.

For more information on this film, you can visit the film's official website at: http://asabovesobelowmovie.com/.
 
Plot Synopsis:

Miles of twisting catacombs lie beneath the streets of Paris, the eternal home to countless souls. When a team of explorers ventures into the uncharted maze of bones, they uncover the secret of what this city of the dead was meant to contain. A journey into madness and terror, As Above, So Below reaches deep into the human psyche to reveal the personal demons that come back to haunt us all. 

"As Far, So Below": Official Trailer