p e n g u i n d e v i l

One of the places that I’ve always wanted to visit is the Paris catacombs, so when I heard there was a movie that took place there, I just had to check it out. I realize that it wasn’t really filmed in the catacombs, but the notion was enough for me… so this is Catacombs, the first feature film brought to us by Fearnet. Surprising, it is actually pretty good. Some of it is shot in that annoying rock video editing style, but not much.

Catacombs is the story of a woman who is invited by her sister to visit Paris. She gets there, meets her annoying sister and her annoying friends and is whisked off to some exclusive dance party taking place illegally in the catacombs under Paris. Apparently this party is all the rage, but our hero isn’t really in to it. Then when they go off and everyone tells her stories of some of the evil uses that the catacombs have been used for: the satanic rites, sacrifices, raising a man on raw meat and with no exposure to sunlight and now he wears a wears a goat head and wanders the tunnels. She starts getting a bit freaked out. So, of course, she wanders off on her own through the tunnels and, let the fun begin!. Surprise, surprise, the goat head appears the big chase is on!

who’s there?

oh, its you…

The rest of the movie is pretty much a chase scene through the catacombs: lots of running, wavering light sources, darkness, and walls of skulls. It feels like watching someone fleeing a minotaur in the dark… After an hour or so I thought it was getting a bit tiring, but then it picks up again and starts to get interesting. The movie isn’t particularly tense or scary, but it’s a nice environment, a great villain, and a fun story with, of course, a nice twist.

well, well, well

not a happy sort of smile