"Below" is a Great Ghost Story AND has (IMO) Reference Quality Video (1 Viewer)

[Larry Talbot]

I always thought it looked good, but as a new owner of a Z1 front projector, seeing it on the big screen has convinced me: Below looks better than any other movie in my collection, including Training Day, Mullholand Drive and The Insider (great looking films in their own right and often cited here for the quality of their visuals).
Very sharp, detailed picture (I can count the number of pores in people's faces,) bright, vibrant colors and deep blacks. There may be a few scenes with mosquito noise, but overall this is the best looking DVD I've seen so far on my system, and a great spooky ghost story to boot. Submarines are creepy enough as it is - add some supernatural stuff and you've got a nice little underwater haunted house. I also recommend Below to anyone with an interest in WWII era naval equipment...they did a really nice job on the period piece stuff, sub, charts, etc.

 

[Dave Poehlman]

Thanks for the review, Larry. I've never seen the movie.. I'll check it out.

 

[Paul_Scott]

yeah i blind bought it after hearing how good the a/v quality was here back when Ron was still doing the reviews and was intrigued by the premise.
its a nifty little flick, not a classic, but i certainly agree with your descrip of the video quality.
it was mighty impressive on my LT150 front projector and is even moreso on my ht1000.

HD would be a bit better, but with quality this good already it seems like splitting hairs to me, and transfers like this make the wait for HD dvd no big deal.

 

[Matt Butler]

Any links to movie info?

Sounds like a winner.

 

[Chuck Wood]

Larry is absolutely right-BELOW is one of the best "ghostly revenge" films I've ever seen!! It ranks right up there with THE INNOCENTS, THE HAUNTING(1963), and THE UNINVITED! I strongly urge everyone who likes this type of film, including fans of Submarine movies, to check it out!

 

[ChuckSolo]

Apart from it being a great ghost story, the underwater sequences are first rate. I bought this used at BlockBuster and I was surprised that the disc is pristine. This is definately one of the best films that many people didn't really pay much attention to at the theaters. I believe it came out pretty close to "Ghost Ship" and wonder if that had anything to do with its not having a great box office. BTW-I was really disappointed in "Ghost Ship." "Below" is a delight though, both video and audio are excellent. The underwater explosion sequences will give your sub a real workout.

 

[Chad A Wright]

Funny you should bring this up, I just bought and watched it two days ago. This was a good film. It wasn't perfect, but it was very enjoyable.

On a side note, Equilibrium is another film by Miramax that most people have not ever even heard of. It was treated the same way Below was at the theater, and so almost no one saw either of them. It's another great gem that I found thanks to this forum.

 

[Chris Tedesco]

I'll be another one to join in saying that this was a very nice suprise!

The movie itself is very good if not great.

Video quality is immaculate and the 5.1 is up there with the best of them.

This is by far my best blind purchase I've ever made.

Suspiria being my worst for those who care.

 

[Bob Pierce]

Sigh! I've been tracking the price on this one since it came out, and the lowest according to DVDPricesearch.com is still $18.50! :frowning: I really want to see it, but I'm holding out for a price drop. I've never bought a DVD used....maybe I should take the plunge....

Thanks for the info,

- Bob P.

 

[CraigF]

Same as Bob, but gave up waiting for the price to drop a few months ago. It is not a cheap disc, and $18.50 is less than I paid, and I've seen it for plenty more than that. It's way much better than typical spooky movies IMO. Kinda hard to find up here, never seen it in a B&M.

There are other threads on it in this forum, and bottom line is the same as this one: definitely above average and worth checking out.

 

[Larry Talbot]

"There are other threads on it in this forum, and bottom line is the same as this one: definitely above average and worth checking out."

I did a thread title search for Below and got zero hits. I'm sure it's been talked about here before but I couldn't find anything.

"I've never bought a DVD used....maybe I should take the plunge...."

What is the concern with buying used DVDs Bob? Maybe half my collection is used, and I've only ever gotten one bad disc. In fact I bought Below used, if memory serves correct, from Schlock Buster or some such place for about ten bucks...I think I'll start another thread asking why people are concerned about buying used. I've saved a lot of money doing so.

 

[CraigF]

Oh yes, I know how hard it is to find some titles with search, especially when they are such rarely used words as "below". I may have a false memory, but I thought for sure there was a review here when it came out, or at least some significant discussion...I'd sure never heard of it before. Could have been an offshoot of a thread, you know how they can veer to other topics. Anyway, somewhere buried in the threadage is pics of the covers (I have the Canadian version) and other verbiage about its goodness, so you haven't missed anything you don't already know now.

 

[Larry Talbot]

"I may have a false memory, but I thought for sure there was a review here when it came out, or at least some significant discussion..."

Oh no, you don't have a false memory there, Craig. Ron P DID do a review for Below. I know because I just tracked it down by going to the link for his old reviews on the front page of HTF. But I couldn't find any threads about it.