As Above, So Below written and directed by John Erick Dowdle and co-written by his brother Drew is a thriller horror film. Released in 2014, the run time of this movie is ninety-three minutes. Starring Perdita Weeks, Ben Feldman, Edwin Hodge, Marion Lambert, Ali Marhyar, and Francois Civil, As Above, So Below is presented as found footage documentary. Loosely based on all the layers of hell, this American film was made with a budget of $5m but earned $41.9m at the box office.
In the film, a group of people, along with archaeologist Scarlett, hunt for the Philosopher’s Stone. She hopes to bring the stone for fortune and fame. But, when she takes it, everyone begins to descend into a terrifying reality.
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As Above, So Below: Plot
Scarlett Marlowe is a young scholar who is continuing her late father’s search. Philosopher’s Stone is a legendary alchemical substance discovered by Nicholas Flamel, and Scarlett’s father had been looking for it before he passed away. This stone can grant eternal life and turn any base metals into gold or silver. Desperate to find this stone, she travels to Paris, where she teams up with George, her former lover, and Benji, her cameraman.
Together they use codes found in a key to solve a riddle on Flamel’s headstone. They succeed and get the coordinates pointing to the catacombs. When they try to reach the location on an official tour, they are told that it is off-limits. There, a stranger informs them a guide called Papillion could help them. As told, they go looking for him at a nearby party. After they spot the guide, Scarlett enlists him along with his girlfriend and friend.
Later, the whole group crawls through a narrow tunnel, but it collapses, trapping them with no help. They are forced onward. When they move forward, they find a blocked tunnel, but Papillion explains that whoever goes through that tunnel disappears right after. He urges them to take a different path, yet they loop back to the blocked tunnel.
At last, they decide to break through. Here, the group finds a tomb with a preserved Templar Knight, a mound of treasure, and the famous Flamel Stone. They grab the stone and leave but attempting to take the treasure triggers a trap. The room collapses, and all hell breaks loose after that. From here onwards, their journey mirrors the plot of Dante’s Inferno. All of them struggle, and a few lives are lost too, but somehow three of them manage to survive. In an ending log, Scarlett is seen saying that she never wanted the treasure, she only sought the truth.
As Above, So Below: End
In the end, just three people remain Zed, George, who is wounded badly, and Scarlett. After going through the layers and mazes, they learn what they must do to survive. They will have to accept their sins if they want to escape this Hell. Zed confesses he has a child that he never sees. Meanwhile, George admits he played a role in his brother’s accidental death. Scarlett, whose curiosity and urge to own the stone started this, confesses she didn’t respond to her father’s call and even stole the Philosopher’s Stone.
Soon, she realizes that she must rectify her wrongs and her sins if she wants to find a way out. She dashes out towards the place where she found the stone. She puts the stone back but learns that there’s no physical stone. The archaeologist figures out in the end that it’s not the stone’s power; rather, its powers are in the beholder of the stone. In her case, it was inside her that’s why she could heal her group member earlier. This power relies on her faith in the stone as well as in herself. With this newfound knowledge, she brings the wounded George back from the brink of death successfully. The three of them go through a manhole and emerge topside on the streets of Paris.
As Above, So Below: Ending Explained
The central premise of As Above, So Below is the concept of getting lost set in a historical setting. This film mainly focuses on redemption, faith, and sins we humans commit. The ending of the film sends out the message that to escape our own hell, we must learn how to accept our sins. The ending also references what one of the catacomb’s apparitions told them earlier: the only way out is down.
That’s how Dante escaped in Inferno, by going down through the circles of Hell. This helped him emerge back to Earth, and if these people want to escape, they must do the same. Also, each person’s struggles shown in Hell are the result of a mistake that they made in their life. They must either accept full responsibility or face death for these past mistakes. Zed, George, and Scarlett accept their sins and get to see another morning on Earth.
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