Devil Beneath

If there was an award for ticking every horror movie cliche box going then 'Devil Beneath' would clean up at the ceremony. Apparently, it was made in 2023 and yet felt like if it was released in the eighties it would feel old-fashioned and outdated.

Two brothers meet up at their family farm in Australia, only to find themselves falling foul to a local beastie. Add a van-load of generic teenagers who you won't care about, let alone remember any of their names, then stamp them with the typical 'jock one' and the 'slutty one' and the 'virginal one' and you can easily figure out each one's fate. There are some bad humans too who you won't care about (guess what happens to them?!) and some locals who have a secret knowledge of what's really happening and you're left wondering who actually green lit this film to begin with.

Not much happens in the first half and by the time the monster shows up (and I use the term 'shows up' loosely) you won't see that much of it because it's shot in a way where you can't really get a good look at it because the budget clearly wasn't high enough for anything more than a so-so computer-generated creature.

In some ways there's absolutely nothing wrong with this film - in horror terms. It certainly ticks all the boxes, but it's biggest fault is just being so generic that there's equally nothing to remember about any of it or offer anything that any seasoned horror fan hasn't already witnessed a hundred times and done better. About the only way you'll really think it's amazing is if you've never watched a monster movie before and aren't aware of every plot contrivance that goes with the genre. Watch it if you like, but I'll wager you won't remember a thing about it in a day's time.

Unlike other reviews here aka Destiny_west that obviously didn't watch the movie because they would have realised that Red Billabong and Devil Beneath are the exact same movie re-released for the America's but then again by the sounds of it they have some type of axe to grind regarding the director....and the writers...and the effects team and probably everyone associated with the production. Its a typical Aussie horror flick that pokes fun at itself but also reveals the political undertones associated with certain Australian history. That being said its just a fun little production so don't watch it if your expecting oscar worthy credentials but at least watch it before passing judgement...top tip don't review movies if you haven't seen them rookie.

Plot

Two estranged brothers come together and discover old family secrets after inheriting their grandfather's property. As their friends start to go missing, they fear they are being stalked by a creature lurking in the shadows.

Cast

Made by the same chap who made the highly meh Occupation (2018).

Verdict

First of all let me clarify this is the movie Red Billabong (2016) re released for some reason.

The tale of two brothers torn between money and their fathers withes and between a peaceful life and being ripped apart by something nasty in the woods. As you can probably work out they have friends who conveniently join them as no horror movie is complete without a bit of cannon fodder.

The trouble is the film is so devastatingly boring, I found myself drifting off multiple times due to a combination of nothing of note happening and it being so generic when it did.

Combine that with some very poor CGI and phoned in performances and this is a very underwhelming effort.

Rants

I remember about a decade ago Australia went through a phase of delivering wall to wall fantastic films such as Wyrmwood and John Doe: Vigilante. It was a great time to be a world cinema fan, it was title after title then suddenly the quality flatlined and we were back to inconsistency again. I've often wondered why that was? A new set of writers who came and went? Law of averages? Or were they just trolling us? Either way, I'd love a repeat.

Breakdown

Poor CGI Weak characters It's all so incredibly generic.

If I had known Devil Beneath was from the same film maker as Red Billabong, I would have not bothered watching it. I actually did not realise that until I came to do my IMDB review, now looking back over Devil Beneath you can blatantly see Luke Sparkle's film style.

Now what can I say about Devil Beneath?

It could have been something. The story idea was there buried beneath a whole lot of stale, robotic acting and bad visual effects. I understand budgets can place a limit on what a film maker can afford, so work within your budget and tailor your script to suit that budget so you can have the best film possible.

I thought that would have been realised after Red Billabong, but obviously not.

The idea that these kind of films keep going out to an international audience is the only thing scary about them.

Get better actors! Or do more rehearsals. Somethings got to give.

I had actually never heard about this 2023 Australian horror movie from writer and director Luke Sparke prior to sitting down and watching it. I liked the movie's cover/poster, and with it being a horror movie that I hadn't already seen, of course I opted to watch "Devil Beneath".

Well, writer and director Luke Sparke only managed to put together a somewhat watchable movie here. I mean, the movie was suffering from being somewhat too formulaic and generic, so when you sit down to watch "Devil Beneath", it is like watching essentially any other creature feature that came before it. There was nothing overly innovative or new here, aside from the movie having a bunyip as the creature.

The acting performances in "Devil Beneath" were fair enough. I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble in the movie, which is usually something I enjoy when I watch a movie. However, the cast didn't really have much to work with in terms of an overly impressive script.

Visually then "Devil Beneath" wasn't all that great. The CGI animated bunyip looked like something straight out of a 1990s computer game. So yeah, you're not going to experience any particular spectacular or impressive CGI, should you opt to sit down and watch "Devil Beneath".

It felt like writer and director Luke Sparke was aiming for a 1980s horror movie feel and atmosphere here. However, it just didn't really muster up to any effectiveness.

This is not a horror movie that I will recommend for horror fans to rush out and get to watch. The movie came and went without leaving a lasting impression, and it is a movie that will just slowly fade away and be swallowed up by the mists of oblivion.

My rating of "Devil Beneath" lands on a three out of ten stars.