20 Trippy Horror Movies Like 'As Above, So Below' To Mess With Your Mind
Dying to find more movies like As Above, So Below? The Legendary Pictures film, directed by John Erick Dowdle, is a found footage favorite that also happens to take place in an incredibly spooky and intriguing location, the Catacombs of Paris. Whether you enjoy the setting, the style of filmmaking, or the involvement of the supernatural, this list features a collection of movies that would make for a perfect As Above, So Below double feature.
If the setting calls you, the movie Catacombs also takes place inside the Paris landmark, while The Descent is another fantastic horror about being trapped underground. The Ritual, Afflicted, and The Forest all feature traveling to other countries. Host, The Outwaters, and V/H/S/99 are great choices for anyone who really loves a wild found footage film. There are also cult favorite indie films, like Hell House LLC and Hellbender.
1. Grave Encounters
Like As Above, So Below, Grave Encounters (2011) sets itself up for success by taking place in one of the creepiest of locales, an abandoned psychiatric hospital. The movie is presented through raw scenes of recovered footage from the last episode of a paranormal reality TV show. The show - Grave Encounters - was cancelled because during the filming of their final episode, the cast and crew disappeared. The popular found footage film led to a 2012 sequel, Grave Encounters 2.
2. The Descent
If you're looking to do an underground double feature, The Descent is one of the best cave horror movies there is. Thrill-seeking women try to distract their friend Sarah with a spelunking getaway after a personal tragedy. But things go wrong when a passage collapses behind them, and their guide reveals she wanted to surprise them by conquering an unknown cave system, meaning no one even knows where to look for them for rescue. Things get much worse when they discover they are not alone down there.
3. REC
Spanish film REC - the inspiration for 2008 American horror Quarantine - also follows a group of people who are trapped and terrified. Except, in this case, the protagonists are not underground. These pour souls are trapped in an apartment building in Barcelona, that's been sealed off by the police and military. Officials are trying to contain the virus, which is making the tenants become extremely aggressive. Reporter Ángela Vidal and her cameraman Pablo are dragged into the situation thanks to a TV series called While You're Sleeping, which had them shadowing local fire stations.
4. Hell House LLC
Hell House LLC follows a group of haunted house creators as they prepare to open their Halloween attraction, Hell House. An "unknown malfunction” on opening night causes the death of 15 visitors, as well as almost the entire staff. This beloved low-budget film makes a good double feature with As Above, So Below for themes of hell, and the disorienting nature of the scenario the protagonists find themselves in.
5. The Outwaters
The Outwaters begins much more lighthearted than As Above, So Below, but both feature film crews on a mission, and end with blood, death, and destruction. Writer, director, and actor Robbie Banfitch plays an aspiring filmmaker who heads off to the Mojave Desert to film a music video for his friend, Michelle. The story is told through the footage found on three memory cards left behind by the missing crew, who seem to have found themselves in some kind of hell.
6. V/H/S/99
The V/H/S/99 segment “To Hell and Back,” written and directed by Vanessa and Joseph Winter, goes particularly well with As Above, So Below. It follows videographers who have been hired to film a coven of witches performing a ritual on New Year’s Eve 1999. They didn’t believe in what was happening, but they sure do once an uninvited demon gets involved and literally drags them into hell. In case you need any more convincing, V/H/S/99 became Shudder's most-viewed premiere in October 2022, a title previously held by V/H/S/94.
7. Final Destination
Final Destination and As Above, So Below both involve forces beyond human control. They’re also both situations where it doesn’t matter whether you believe in the supernatural or not, it still can - and will - get you. This 2000 classic follows a group of students who get off of an airplane - thanks to their classmate Alex (Devon Sawa) having a premonition - right before it explodes. They think they’ve all been spared, but of course, no one can escape death. The film went on to spawn a franchise with four additional movies.
8. The Ritual
The Ritual makes a good double feature for As Above, So Below for a number of reasons, one being that both groups of characters are dealing with a lot of personal demons. The same way that Scarlett's father's suicide was heavy in her heart, Luke in The Ritual is particularly struggling following the death of his friend, Rob, who was killed when the pair accidentally interrupted a robbery in a liquor store. He still bears guilt for choosing to hide when they saw the armed thieves, rather than trying to help his friend Rob get out alive, too.
9. Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin
Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin takes place in the same universe as the other Paranormal Activity movies, but the only recognizable connection is the demon, Asmodeus from the Book of Tobi (called “Tobi” in previous films). This found footage follows Margot, who is making a documentary with her friends about an Amish community that has a connection to her mysterious past. Like the spelunkers in As Above, So Below, the film crew in Next of Kin are about to find a whole lot more than they were anticipating.
10. Hellbender
Hellbender is more witches than walking through Dante’s Inferno, but the chaotic magic energy is there. The film follows Izzy and her mother, who divide their time between making metal music, and living a peaceful, isolated life in the woods. That is, until a chance encounter reveals the family’s connection to witchcraft. Hellbender comes from the impressive Adams family (John Adams and Toby Poser, and their daughters Lulu and Zelda Adams), who shot this film themselves, at their home in Catskill, New York, during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.
11. The Blair Witch Project
The Blair Witch Project starts out simple, as a small documentary crew heads into the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland to film about local legend, the Blair Witch. But just as As Above, So Below starts out with a bit of fun (albeit dangerous) spelunking, things get really confusing, really quickly. The map goes missing, everyone gets irritable and scared, and strange cairns and symbols made of twigs tied together with string, teeth, and hair, start appearing outside their tent. The Blair Witch Project is a classic, and belongs on any found footage best list.
12. The Forest
While As Above, So Below's Scarlett is on the hunt for the philosopher's stone, Sara is braving the Aokigahara forest in Japan to search for her missing twin sister, Jess. Sara was told by Japanese police that Jess had died, because she was seen going into the forest, which is known as a place people go to when they want to complete suicide. However, Sara insists that her sister is still alive, and goes into the forest, despite warnings from basically everyone she interacts with. She will have to contend with the ghosts of the forest, known as yūrei.
13. The Amityville Horror
One of the horrifying discoveries of The Amityville Horror is an entrance to Hell, not unlike the one found in As Above, So Below. This 1979 film is a beloved horror classic, based on a true story, at least in the sense that Ronald DeFeo Jr. very much did kill his entire family at the iconic Ocean Avenue house… which the Lutz family then moved into. The movie follows the family as they experience strange phenomena that leads to them abandoning their new home, along with all of their belongings.
14. Catacombs
Catacombs and As Above So Below are similar in the sense that both horror films take place in the spooky underground Catacombs of Paris. However, the characters in Catacombs risk their lives for a much less noble reason than Scarlett, who is on the hunt for the infamous Philospher’s Stone. Carolyn and her friends just want to take her anxiety-ridden sister down into the Catacombs for a party. This movie features the singer Pink, who was then credited by her real name, Alecia Moore.
15. The Tunnel
If you have to bypass security to enter underground tunnels, there is probably a reason why. That’s a lesson learned the hard way by those in As Above, So Below, as well as The Tunnel. This Australian found footage film follows a journalist and her film crew as they sneak into a system of tunnels beneath Sydney in an attempt to investigate a government cover-up. There have also been rumors that the homeless people taking refuge in the tunnels have begun to go missing, and the film crew is about to find out why.
16. Afflicted
Afflicted is another cool indie found footage film, and the directorial debut for Derek Lee and Clif Prowse. It took home the special jury citation for best Canadian first feature film at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. It follows good friends Derek and Clif, who go on a trip around the world to film their travel web series, Ends of the Earth. The project is Derek's last wish, because he has a health condition that could result in his death at any moment.
17. Unfriended
Another supernatural found footage, Unfriended follows a group of friends, who each have about a million skeletons in their respective closets, including the fact that they bullied someone so much she went on to kill herself. One year after Laura’s death, we see via Skype footage that Laura’s friends were anything but - and she’s looking for revenge on every last one of them. The Blumhouse Productions film went on to inspire Unfriended: Dark Web, though it is a stand-alone sequel.
18. The Veil
The Veil is like As Above, So Below in the way that it plays with alchemy, and whether or not it is possible to bring someone back to life. The Veil follows a filmmaker named Maggie, played by Jessica Alba, who wants to explore the site of a mass suicide of the members of religious cult Heaven’s Veil. She believes there is footage from the suicide that has never been found. The cult in the movie seems to be inspired by real-life suicide cult, Heaven’s Gate. However, the leader of the cult was more inspired by Jim Jones and David Koresh.
19. Creep 2
Creep 2 is like As Above, So Below simply because it is so bizarre and disorienting. The indie film, directed by Patrick Brice, is the sequel to 2014’s Creep, which followed a struggling videographer as he went to work for a new, eccentric client. This time, serial killer “Aaron” (Mark Duplass) lures Sara (Desiree Akhavan) to his isolated cabin, and says he will let her live for 24 hours, only if she films a documentary on his life.
20. Host
Host is a surprisingly well-done and thrilling horror film for taking place over Zoom, during the 2020 pandemic. It features a group of friends who do weekly Zoom calls to keep in touch, and decide one of them will feature a medium, Seylan, to lead them in a séance. Unfortunately, one of the girls, Jemma (Jemma Moore), does not take the process seriously, and in making up a fake story, inadvertently gives a horrible demon, which Seylan calls a “tulpa,” access to our world.
This article was originally published on Ranker.com.
