From Beneath (2012) User Reviews

Interesting introduction to film making

[andy2552 · 4/10 · 27 January 2013]

I read some of the awful reviews of the film and then decided to watch it anyway, I like B movies.

The other reviews comment on the film itself so I'll limit my thoughts on that to the following.

The film itself is not great, acting was painful at times and the music seemed to be trying to overcompensate for other flaws but on the plus side the camera work was good.

I'm giving it a 4 because it's a useful film for would be movie makers.

I'd be interested to know what the actual budget was and how long it took to film but it is clearly a very constrained budget film if you managed to stay watching until the end credits they were all covered in around one page with less than 10 people involved, in many movies these days you have 10 minutes of credits.

For 90% of the film it was two characters in a single setting and they have put together a watchable feature length film with their own original take on soundtrack that whilst it's definitely not for everyone, many people will watch it, some will enjoy it and cable channels will probably snap it up.

Absolutely ridiculous

[aztrshbyz · 2/10 · 2 June 2017]

The only thing this movie has going for it is the soundtrack and some of the cinematography. How it has a rating of 6 I'll never know.

Jason and Sam are going to go visit Sam's sister who lives in the middle of nowhere. When they arrive, the relatives aren't around, so they decide to go exploring. They come upon a nasty looking lake and decide to jump on in. Not a good plan. Jason ends up with a parasite in his leg and the leg becomes badly infected. He stars losing his mind.

Sam and Jason arrived by car. Does Sam take Jason immediately to the nearest town where he can get medical help? Of course not. Do the phones work? Of course not. Do they find a key they need when they have never been there before? Of course they do. Does Jason's limp come and go? Of course it does. Does Sam conveniently find a video camera that partially explains where her family is? Of course she does.

Horror movies that are stupid and convenient really run my nerves. Add to that the insipid dialog ("I'm the reason why my car isn't working! I can't control myself anymore!") and horrible acting and you've really got a turkey on your hands. I managed to make it all the way through, but it sure was a struggle. My eyes hurt by the end of this debacle because of all the rolling of them I did.

The fact that it's low budget isn't an issue for me. I've seen low budget movies that I've absolutely loved. This isn't one of them. I wouldn't recommend this film to anyone.

Earnest efforts, and a relatively strong back end, only get one so far.

[I_Ailurophile · 3/10 · 12 October 2023]

The premise sounds promising. The opening scene is far too overt; dialogue in the next is astoundingly forthright, and rather hackneyed. The overall production values are rather bare-faced, as are - in turn - David Doucette's direction, cinematography, and editing. The latter two facets are characterized by little embellishments that are ill-fitting for a picture of this nature, and the direction furthermore impacts the acting, which is sadly weak and unconvincing. It's a poor impression that this makes from the outset, and one hopes that the presentation will turn around; other titles have managed it. Unfortunately, these issues don't improve, and I would argue they actually get worse as the length advances. I wish nothing but the best for all who participated here, and may they grow in their skills and find success in the future, but 'From beneath' is rather trying.

Doucette's writing and direction are both gawkily heavy-handed and tactless, stripping away nuance from the proceedings. For that lack of a mindful, delicate touch, the viewing experience is robbed of tension and suspense; what should be creepy or cringe-worthy is emphatically not. Bereft of meaningful feeling, the storytelling just comes across as simple and unsophisticated. The practical effects and special makeup are pretty swell, if not always used in the best way; against all odds the post-production visuals are fairly decent and blend into the filmed footage better than can be said for some much bigger productions. There are good ideas here, if familiar, yet not only are they unpolished - sometimes it quite seems that they've not even been fully hewn from the initial slab of rock. Not for one moment do I doubt the earnestness of anyone involved, but their skills are another matter.

I think the back end is notably stronger in at least some regards; though still illustrating significant faults, it seems evident that more care and energy were devoted to the last 25-30 minutes, for what it's worth. Jesse Wentzloff's music lends a tinge of harsh atmosphere, for example; the culmination of the scenario at last produces some engaging tension; especially as the aggravating dialogue takes a back seat to violence, Lauren Watson and Jamie Temple's performances come off better than they did previously. I feel bad being so critical, honestly. Save for the dialogue I don't think 'From beneath' is specifically bad in any way - it's just burdened so heavily by flimsy construction, undeveloped skills, and dubious choices that the strength is sapped from the proceedings. There is value here, but it's regrettably all too little. There are worse ways to spend one's time, but the improvement we see in the last stretch has a hard time compensating for the problems of the preceding hour, and except for those ardent cinephiles who are receptive to all the wide possibilities of the medium, regardless even of quality, it's hard to particularly imagine giving 'From beneath' as a recommendation. Best of luck for Doucette and his cast and crew, that they may achieve more in the future.

Very bad cheap movie and IMDb rating is flawed

[trick_morr · 1/10 · 26 February 2015]

About 3 seconds into this movie I knew it was a bad movie and was checking back on IMDb like "what convinced me to check this movie out again?" I don't know how this movie got the rating it has.

This movie has that very easy-to-capture atmosphere of "cheap movie made by high-school kids." It's not a fun kind of bad movie. This one is just bad. Bad script (but not bad enough), bad acting (but not bad enough), poor quality everything.

This is the first time I have watched a movie that was rated over a 6 on IMDb and found it to be anything but great. Why did this exception have to be so exceptional?

This movie will almost definitely NOT make it into the elite group of bad movies which become cult classics.

Don't waste your time on this movie.

Stomp on it quickly

[movieman_kev · 1/10 · 2 September 2013]

OK, the last few films I've seen were pretty bad indeed, but the ineptitude of this little movie about parasites that burrow under the skin of the male half of a couple who take an impromptu dip into a lake takes it up a notch (or is down a notch the correct terminology) in the bad movie spectrum.

Everything about this screams awfulness. Whether it be the horribly stilted dialog, the forced unbelievable relationship strife, or even the uninspired musical score, it all adds up to one unwatchable mess of a movie.

Where I saw it: Redbox Innstant

Bad evil dead rip off.

[djangozelf-12351 · 1/10 · 13 December 2015]

The most promising scene in this was an obvious rip off from the evil dead remake. The rest of the movie is ruined by terrible sound and light effects. The dialogue by the four women are annoying and the audio goes from bad to worse.

Some make up seemed O.K.but this also was only for one or two scenes and more silly than scary. They do use a lot of blood but in such a way that it looses meaning pretty fast because it don't really add to the movie. The movie relies to much on the ladies acting skills which is a huge mistake because non of them can.

If they had focused on the creature it could have been something more but sadly they did not do that.

It is the sort of movie where the pro's don't outweigh the con's and therefor the overall feel becomes totally forgettable.

A waste of a movie for the big old B-movie pile.

I can not recommend it.

Warning...watch at own risk.

I fall for it every time!

[CharlieHound · 1/10 · 12 January 2013]

6.9/10 - That's the score this... thing had when I watched it. It is now at 3.2/10 and I have no doubt that it will fall to one of the lowest scoring movies of all time!

I've seen some bad movies in my time but this one really has lowered the bar. It is, without doubt, the worst movie I have EVER had the misfortune of watching!

I somehow managed to make it to 25 minutes before the desire to rip my eyes out of their sockets took over. Fortunately, the movie was so bad that the feeling of bewilderment counteracted this overwhelming desire, so I'm now in a position to warn any potential viewers... Do not watch this movie... you will regret it!

Words cannot describe how bad this is!

It will put you to sleep...

[paul_haakonsen · 1/10 · 16 January 2013]

I thought I had already seen the most boring movie, but then I came across "From Beneath". I stand corrected. This movie was so boring and uneventful that it was a struggle to stay awake through it from start till end.

The story in "From Beneath" is about a young couple who are out somewhere in the middle of nowhere, apparently, as they have no coverage for their mobile phones. A strange creature latches onto Jason and starts taking over his mind and body.

Sure, the story was good enough in theory, but it just didn't offer anything new to the genre, nor did it at any point turn out to be anywhere remotely near scary or thrilling. The story was slow-moving and uneventful. And the horrible dialogue and staggering acting didn't really help the movie along in any way.

There were so many things in the movie that just makes you stop and wonder in amazement, why someone would do such a thing in the given situation. There was a lot of moments in the movie that was just not making much sense.

What I found most fun about "From Beneath" was the undefinable sources of bright light that was present in the middle of the dark woods at night. That was just hilarious. And as for creature effects, well don't expect to actually see anything aside from the odd tentacles emerging out of the water.

If you enjoy thrillers and this particular genre of movies, then there are far better movies available. "From Beneath" is unfathomably boring on every account.

I was thoroughly 'bored from beneath'.

i mean .... they did a thing ?

[godinamachine · 2/10 · 8 December 2021]

HEY EVERYBODY ITS ME, (4) and today we review .....

from an indie film guy perspective the opening scoring was solid ... the weird guitar bassing sound was good ... WAY better than so many indie films that choose to just slap some generic death metal in every scene .... then you have the erie droning sounds ,and a echoing kyoto picking .... just in the first 15 minutes so ....who ever scored this actually tried to give it some thought .....good job ....

the acting however isnt as well played as the music ... lol.... "its in my leg .... oh well lets get out of here" i mean ... call me crazy (and they often do) BUT if i saw something crawling inside of my skin i wouldnt casually be like "eh no biggy" ... id be like ... yea i need to cut this thing out FAST .... NEVER EVER in history has there been a moment where someone saw things under their skin crawling around and it was a good thing ..... and on the acting thing .... i got to call it where i see it kids ..... at the 21 minute mark during the argument about saying i love you .... shes literally reading the lines .... come on ....the LEAST you can do for those times is read them first .... then do a take .........not read them while doing the take lol....

at one point she says "turn on the light" and he responds " there isnt one" ..... OBVIOUSLY because for 75 percent of the movie im having to watch using my night vision goggles to see anything !!!!!!!!!!!

However LIKE the music aspect ... the digital work at the end is pretty solid i wish maybe they would have used THAT more than the "hey my kids have markers " styled "infection" look .... i mean ... i get the look you were going for and indeed its a tough one to pull off on film,.... a little goes a long way BUT that was so dark it looked like a bad tattoo vs infection ........ BUT for reals those tentacles look GOOD ....

sound ....EH hit and miss ... this is where indie films live or die ...... if sound is bad it is pointless .....this film sound was decent ....it has some moments of "huh ,,,what? " ...but for the most part being 90 you can still hear whats said ...........

over all however i found myself bored half way through and ended up skipping around until the end , only because the pacing mid way falls short .....mostly its a couple of people having arguments lol.... so eh if i wanted that i would just tell my wife the earth is flat and listen to her call me an idiot for an hour + ........

2/10

it could have been much more than it was with a simple bit more action mid way to keep pacing up, maybe they go back out and theres more monster stuff happen ........maybe someone else shows up and adds to the over all "uh oh" aspect of possible kills .... i dont know BUT something else was needed ......oh and a light bulb .... like 2 bucks m let me know ill even buy it for you guys next time ....

Oh. My. God.

[mary-laking · 1/10 · 23 December 2019]

This is one of those films that I couldn't stop watching because it was horribly fascinating. It was a traffic accident - I was ashamed, but I couldn't tear my eyes away. The acting was terrible and the plot was unbelievable - not so much what happened to the truly pathetic Jason, but the characters' reactions. "I think we'd better put your dead sister outside because she's beginning to smell." And how is it that when they're obviously in a terrible situation, all Jason can say is, "It's going to be all right, Sam." That is, when he's not screaming and saying he needs to cut himself because of the creature inside him. Sure, just wait a little longer and it'll all resolve itself.

Be open minded, not spoon fed

[codycarlington1234 · 8/10 · 19 January 2013]

When you watch this movie you need to look at the right things. Yeah it may be slow in spots. Yeah the acting can be painfully average at times. But look at the cinematography, the eerie colors used to set a surreal scene where you don't know what's reality and what isn't. The score is unreal, it suits the movie so well. It's simple and to the point and it was obviously done intentionally. So anyone who says the score is too repetitive or you don't get to see the creature.. you are missing the whole point. You are looking at the film completely wrong. You need to appreciate it for what it is. A slow suspenseful film that doesn't spoon feed you every little thing. If it did it would be just like a million other creature thrillers. This one shows you just enough to frustrate you in a good way and make you think. Good independent filmmaking with a few bumps in the script. Watch it and appreciate it for as a well made, original take on a creature feature

Now with 50% potential!

[rushknight · 6/10 · 29 January 2013]

I love a good bad movie, if you know what I mean.

Cheesy plots, poor acting, bad special effects and lame music usually make my night.

I also love really good movies, where all the elements are seamlessly directed and molded into a fine masterpiece.

THIS movie, unfortunately, falls right in the middle, which is much like being friend-zoned by the girl you love. The words "almost," "lukewarm," "medium," and even "common" fit this movie more than any other words I can think of.

The acting is good overall, with one major flaw: The director allows too much space between each line, giving the flow of the dialogue a halting, plodding effect. This is not the fault of the actors, it's the fault of the director and even the editor. It ultimately did not feel natural at all. The actors never even successfully interrupted each other. They just kept waiting patiently for the other person to finish their line. It felt hesitant.

The music, on the other hand, was absolutely sub par in every respect. The entire "soundtrack," if you'd care to bless it with such a prestigious title, was entirely made of one guy (maybe two, I don't know) playing his bass guitar and doing some other guitar work over the top from time to time, with scary sound effects mixed in. It was much too simple, and was played way too loudly at the "scary" parts of the film, quite literally drowning out the action! And there was one, and ONLY one, musical theme, consisting of three notes, doh may ray, played over and over and over and over and over and over again to the point of absolute annoyance. Don't you think that even an amateur musician could come up with something slightly more.. long-ish?

I kept thinking of a hippy smoking weed in his garage, playing the same three notes on his bass and saying to himself, "Oh maaaan dude! Maaaaaaan. This would make such a great soundtrack."

Other than that, I quite enjoyed the film. The setting was nicely done, being filmed in a wet, lush environment that left you feeling that warm, dry creatures like human beings didn't really belong in it, and were less than welcome. It was good usage of the terrain and gave the film an adequately creepy feel. The actual shooting of the footage was nicely handled as well.

And the reactions of the protagonists to their situation, while somewhat unoriginal, were believable enough. Though I must admit, there was not really any surprises in this movie. You sort of see everything coming.

Overall, I just feel that this film was good, but didn't deliver the way it could have.

Not a bad indie movie

[fairlesssam · 5/10 · 3 July 2017]

I enjoyed this movie, it's a Canadian Indie Horror/Drama. A young couple (Sam and Jason) drive to visit some of Sam's family who have moved out to the sticks next to a lake. When they get there they find her family are not there. Thinking the family must have nipped to the shops Sam and Jason decide to explore. They find the lake and decide to go for a swim (not the best of decisions by the look of the lake). When they get out Sam has a leech-like creature on her back and they see something moving under the skin of Jason's leg.

Although a little boring at times the film managed to keep my interest all the way through. The acting is not 100% but it's pretty good. The dialogue is good, the relationship between Jason and Sam is believable. They are pretty likable characters.

If you are a big horror movie fan of all budgets then give it a go, I never expect to much so as not to be disappointed.

There's some gore which is quite gross at times with is pretty cool.

Unexpected Ending

[erindocking · 10/10 · 14 January 2013]

This film, while currently it shows a poor rating, had me enthralled right to the climatic ending.

You can't go into this film though thinking big effects and high budget because if thats the case you will be disappointed. Simply put it is not a A list movie and didn't have the big production behind it. But the quality of what was shot on a limited budget is remarkable.

The story and the delivery from its actors especially Lauren Watson who in my mind was the standout and carried the film through some of the slower scenes, was realistic, and raw. Her delivery made me really feel for her character; especially through some of the more emotional scenes.

While it was slow moving at times, I didn't find myself ever bored. I was always curious to how it would end and never once did I even get close to guessing the startling conclusion.

If you can watch a film with an open mind then I recommend this one to you.

Acting terrible. But good other than that.

[billwilliams150 · 7/10 · 29 January 2015]

Listen,the acting in this movie is painful. But the cinematography is great. I just read they made this movie for 13 grand! The production value seems way higher than that. And I read this was their first feature. If they had better actors and a little bit better script...there was some plot holes... this movie could have been insanely good. Very interested to see what Doucette does next. For now I would say watch From Beneath for yourself. It is a little hard to sit through at times... Like I said the acting is so bad but kind of funny because its so bad. But its worth the watch. Indie film is always interested when you take a look at what they were able to do with so little.

Visually Stunning

[shanethompson501 · 10/10 · 22 January 2013]

Besides the first scene, the fifteen minutes or so after that are a little slow as the characters are being developed. After that the movie is a slow burn as the intensity ramps up. The last 20 minutes alone make the movie worth the watch. From Beneath is also visually really stunning, especially the night scenes and the blood scenes. Not to mention the fact that this is a low budget indie so the fact that the cinematography was pretty well done is even more of an accomplishment. Im interested to see what David Doucette does next. With a tighter script and a bigger budget his next film could be unstoppable. Also the simple roughness of the score through out the movie is awesome, it really makes you feel the doom that awaits.

Utterly Confusing Poster/DVD Art

[Hollywood_Yoda · 23 September 2021]

If you are going to actually watch this film, do yourself a favor first, make sure it is the correct version. The DVD of this film has the artwork for the 2014 film Lake Fear, which is a completely different film. The poster used for the IMDB page here, appears to fit the storyline on the DVD cover. However, the DVD cover uses the Artwork for the 2014 film, alternately titled Cypress Creek.

Whomever made this stupid mistake has caused mass confusion between the two films, especially if you have seen both DVDs side by side. Make sure you watch and review the correct version, accordingly.