Another of the ‘found footage’ / ‘helmet camera’ movies which have, mostly unsuccessfully, plagued our screens over the last number of years. In this movie Scarlett Marlowe, (Perdita Weeks) is an alchemy scholar who is continuing her fathers research in looking for the philosopher’s stone which (as any Harry Potter fan will tell you) is a legendary substance which can turn metals into gold. This leads her from Iran to Paris where she needs to enlist her former lover George (Ben Feldman), who has knowledge of ancient languages, for assistance as he can translate the script Scarlett has found. These two along with Scarletts cameraman, a local guide, his girlfriend and friend descent into the underground catacombs of Paris as this is where the map/script shows the treasure is hidden.

As the group delves deeper and deeper into the Catacombs towards what is perceived to be the gates of hell on a journey of madness, stranger and stranger events occur playing on their psyche as they get picked off one by one in a been there, done that kind of way. The big plus this movie has (that I found anyway) was the link of the progress of the characters to Dante’s journey through hell in the novel Dante’s inferno, a trip through a purgatory like world, travelling down to get up, their greed being the trigger to their potential demise and redemption comes through the purging of one’s sins.

While it’s not the worst movie I’ve watched, between the shaky cam, uninspiring acting and lack of surprises there nothing here I can recommend, if you want a claustrophobic horror movie try the excellent ‘The Descent’ instead.

DJ Speaks Rating: 4.5 out of 10