Down Below

"Down Below" is a horror gem! It's got a killer cast for the genre, spooky small-town vibes, and a plot that keeps you guessing. Eric Roberts and Bai Ling crush it as always, but it's Alexis Knapp's gritty performance that steals the show.

Also Mr. Monday is one of the most unpredictable villains I've seen in a long time, not the classic Jason knock-off we've been accustomed to 100 times over! If you know you know.

The whole film is eerie and actually original-a rare find in horror these days.

Plus, it's only 90 minutes long! Finally a movie that knows how to pack a punch without dragging on endlessly for hours like so many 3+ hour sagas lately.

Of course I was not familiar with the 2024 horror movie "Down Below" prior to sitting down and watching it here in 2024. Of course I would watch it, given my life-long romance with the horror genre.

But I have to say that seeing Eric Roberts listed at the first name on the cover was not exactly thrilling, as I am not really much of a fan of his. But at least the movie also had Doug Jones and Bai Ling listed on the cover.

Writer, director and star Spyder Dobrofsky put together a script that proved very, very disjointed. The narrative was all over the place, without ever really going anywhere. And that made for a confusing and somewhat boring viewing experience. At an hour into the 93 minute runtime, I still didn't really know what writer and director Spyder Dobrofsky was trying to accomplish with this movie, nor what the core of the story was about.

The acting performances in the movie were okay. Bai Ling managed to spruce up the movie with her performance.

But you know that a movie that is starring, written and directed by one and the same guy usually isn't going to be a stellar viewing experience. And "Down Below" was no different.

If you enjoy horror movies, don't waste 93 minutes on watching "Down Below". Some of us suffered through this ordeal, so you don't have to; you're quite welcome. While I managed to suffer through this movie, I can honestly say that I wasn't entertained, nor will I ever return to watch it a second time.

My rating of "Down Below" lands on a generous three out of ten stars.

Down Below is a strange movie that never really gets off the ground, to say the least. The movie opens with the idea that something bad happened at a church; however, it quickly jumps 20 years into the future. The majority of the film follows Salem/Red, who is trying to clear his name of a crime he didn't commit. At the same time, Red and the others attempt to make sense of what happened at the church and if anything happened at all. I won't spoil anything, but the story is hard to follow. There are a few shocking moments, but the story is so all over the place that it is hard to get emotionally involved. Also, a lot of the acting is really bad, like the actors are just reading their lines. The camera work was all over the place, and I didn't like most of the shot angles and the lighting. I was attracted to this movie because of Alexis Knapp. I really like Alexis as an actor/celebrity. She was great in movies like The Pitch Perfect trilogy, Project X, and So Undercover. However, lately, she seems to be in a slump of subpar films, and this one doesn't help. Don't get me wrong. Alexis is beautiful in every scene, and she does okay with what she is given. Yet, she has very little screen time, and her character, who had the potential to be an interesting character, never really goes anywhere. I guess being an executive producer was enough to get her to commit to this movie. But she did look stunning in pink hair, and her outfit was fire, so there is that. I just hope she finds better roles in the future. My main complaint is that the story just wasn't very good. Now, I don't mind a little ambiguity. Inception, Memento, and Blade Runner are all ambiguous in their way, but it's okay because you are invested in the characters and their story. However, in this movie, it was so confusing what was real and what wasn't that eventually, it got to the point I didn't care. Also, I know they didn't have much of a budget for this film, but the acting was bland, and the main character was unlikable. With a few changes, this probably could've been a fun movie that made you think. However, as it is, I would only recommend this movie if you can see it for free or if you want to see Alexis Knapp.

Also how is this sitting at a 9.2? I had to take a screen shot just to remember its original rating.

This is one of the worst movies I've ever seen. It's clear that the director (who very foolishly cast himself in the main role even though he absolutely cannot act) clearly thinks he is a new David Lynch. He very much is not. The script is terrible and overacted; the cinematography is pedestrian and looks like a teenager filmed it and thought it was deep. No one does a good job acting in this, and for some of their sake's (how did this happen, Doug Jones?!), I hope I am the last person to ever watch this. The story is disjointed without the connective tissue of a Lynch film. I can find no rhyme or reason for the bleached out filter throughout the film. And who financed this? Why?

I am furious that I paid to watch this on Prime. The high rating here is clearly due to friends of the filmmakers writing fluff to combat the lower scores. The same is happening on Rotten Tomatoes-no real reviewers even saw this film.

My only guess here is that Dobrofsky thinks himself far smarter than he is. He should really reevaluate his professional choices.

This one is just good. I don´t care about the bad reviews (stars are only a formality). Today it is hard to find original movies, that are not sequels, remakes or IP. This one feels hand made and has the enthusiasm of a young filmmaker. Eric Roberts is cool here. It is hard to make a film and Spyder got it going. He will get better and better with his coming films. I admire writer/directors who get things done. No film is perfect by any means; everyone feels a film critic nowadays. I love film and original filmmakers. Like it or not, this guy is writing his own world and for me, that is it. Cheers and keep the puck sliding.