(2011) ****
When the government’s plan to use ancient, dilapidated tunnels below Sydney to build a much-needed water recycling facility is dropped without explanation rumors start to spread about missing homeless people. Up and coming journalist, Natasha, convinces 3 male colleagues to explore the vast underground system with her in order to investigate the purported disappearances. Breaking into these underground chambers they find a vast, foreboding, claustrophobic labyrinth with only the light of their video equipment to guide them. After hearing strange noises in the distance one of Natasha’s colleagues goes missing. What follows is an intense, frightening exploration as they descend deeper and deeper into the tunnels searching for their lost friend. It soon becomes apparent that they are being stalked by someone or something very large.
The Tunnel is rock solid and is the first film to give me goosebumps this year! This is Australia’s answer to the found-footage craze with a twist. Rather than simply playing the raw footage shot by the journalists, the entire film is presented as a documentary with interviews, news reports, and the “footage”, which makes the entire affair more interesting than the usual found footage films. The footage itself is dread-inducing. Those with claustrophobia will find themselves hyperventilating (think urban Descent). The abandoned tunnels are like a playground out of hell; grimy, dangerous, and bloody.
Although The Tunnel is a mix of Blair Witch, REC, and The Descent without really offering anything new, the location is spooky as hell, the actors are excellent, and the terror feels very real. Director Carlo Ledesma takes his time setting up the story and it pays off once the shit hits the fan. Smartly done, I really enjoyed this film and place it near the top of the “found footage” films I’ve seen. The best news is that it is available to watch free online. The distributors paid for the film by apparently selling each frame for $1, which raised $135,000. The Tunnel is a damn fine horror movie and I highly recommend it.
