As Above, So Below is a 2014 horror thriller directed by John Erick Dowdle and built around a found-footage style that follows a small group descending into the Paris catacombs in search of the Philosopher’s Stone. Starring Perdita Weeks, Ben Feldman and Edwin Hodge, the film combines archaeological mystery, occult symbolism and claustrophobic survival horror, gradually turning its underground quest into something closer to a descent into hell. What gives the film its particular identity is the way it mixes adventure-film ideas with panic, guilt and psychological terror inside an environment that already feels disturbing before anything supernatural begins to happen.
The film was shot in Paris, and its most important location is the real Catacombs of Paris beneath the city. Production took place in Paris in 2013, and the filmmakers received permission to shoot not only in the public sections of the catacombs but also in off-limits areas, making it the first production allowed to film there in that way. Much of the shoot took place underground, which gives the film a far more physical and oppressive atmosphere than a studio recreation would have done. Other Paris locations used in the film include the Fontaine des Innocents, Père Lachaise Cemetery, the Musée de Cluny, Pont Alexandre III and the Eiffel Tower, but it is the catacombs themselves that dominate the film’s identity and turn Paris into something dark, ancient and labyrinthine rather than romantic or picturesque.
Catacombs of Paris
The Catacombs of Paris are most closely associated with "As Above, So Below" (2014). The location also appears in "The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon" (2023–).
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