Catacombs (2007)

Directors:

Tomm Coker
David Elliot

Writers (WGA):

Tomm Coker (written by) &
David Elliot (written by)

Release Date:

6 July 2007 (Italy)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Below the city of lights exists a world of darkness.

Plot:

On her first trip to Paris, a young woman hits a party in the Catacombs, the 200-mile labyrinth of limestone...

Plot Keywords:

Catacombs | Party | Tunnel | Blood Splatter | Flare

Cast

Shannyn Sossamon	...	Victoria
Pink	...	Carolyn (as Alecia Moore)
Emil Hostina	...	Henri
Sandi Dragoi	...	Liaves
Mihai Stanescu	...	Jean Michele
Cabral Ibacka	...	Hugo
Radu Andrei Micu	...	Nico
Cain Manoli	...	Leon
DJ Kosta	...	DJ
Marcello Cobzarju	...	Customs Officer #1
Marinela Chelaru	...	Customs Officer #2
Catalin Rotaru	...	Customs Officer #3
Tomm Coker	...	Dr. Giggles
Maxime X.	...	Virgin Mother
Conner Gebhart	...	Goat boy

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, terror and disturbing images, language, some nudity and drug content.

Runtime:

USA:100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color

Certification:

USA:R | Japan:R-15 | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Finland:K-18 | Germany:16 | Australia:MA (2008) | Singapore:M18 | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:18 | Netherlands:16

Filming Locations:

Bucharest, Romania

Company:

Lions Gate Films

Trivia:

Producer Gregg Hoffman died during the making of the film, and production was halted for nearly a year.

Goofs:

Continuity: After climbing the 'waterfall' in the catacombs with a pickaxe still in her hand, after the shot cuts, she has no pickaxe anymore, then in the next scene she has it again.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Victoria: My sister sent me a postcard. All it said was, "Come to Paris. It will be good for you." Forty-eight hours after I arrived, she and everyone I'd met were dead.

Soundtrack:

Blue Butterfly

Claustrophobic and Tense

When the troubled and addicted in pills Victoria (Shannyn Sossamon) receives a card in USA from her sister Carolyn (Alecia Moore), who is studying in Sorbonne, inviting her to visit Paris, she immediately travels to meet her sister. When Vic arrives, Carolyn brings her to a rave party in the underground of Paris in a location called Catacombs, and introduces her to her friends. They tell Vic that in the 500 kilometer mace, more than seven million people was buried two hundred years ago; further, the labyrinth is haunted by a monster that wears a goat mask and chase people. In accordance with the urban legend, a boy born in an incestuous intercourse was locked in the labyrinth and fed with raw meat by the Cult of the Black Virgin to be the Antichrist, becoming an evil beast. The tired and upset Victoria decides to leave the party, but she gets lost in the mace; when her sister finds her, she is attacked and killed by the beast. Victoria runs in the dark tunnels trying to reach an exit or find Carolyn's friends while she is chased by her innermost fears.

The claustrophobic and tense "Catacombs" is an underrated horror movie. The gore story is good with a great twist; Shannyn Sossamon screams a lot in panic and has a great and convincing performance, demonstrating the tension and fear felt by her character; but on the contrary, Carolyn is too vulgar for a student of the traditional Sorbonne. The frantic camera work associated to the use of lightening is excellent and I startled many times along the story. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Catacumbas" ("Catacombs")