Tunnel Movie

Plot-The events depicted on this film were a culmination of police evidentiary material and a journalist and her own crew's personal tapes. In Sydney, an investigation into a government cover-up leads to a network of abandoned train tunnels. As a journalist and her crew go into the tunnels to find out about the cover up, they soon realize their is something else down there.

Review- The first 30 minutes of the film, we get the dialogue of two of the main characters as they run us thru the events that lead up to them going into the tunnel systems and why they did it. We learn this crew is investigating a network of tunnels underneath Sydney and discovering why the Government abandoned its plans to use an underground reservoir in the hopes of relieving Australia's water crisis. But, they start to dig further into this story, and wonder what happened to the homeless people who lived in these tunnels. This film goes back and forth from the two main characters sharing their take on what is going on, and us watching it for ourselves. Things pick up when they discover Trevor (or Trev as he likes to be called) he was one of the homeless who was in The Tunnel. As soon as they start to ask questions, he freaks out and runs into a corner. Then, Natalie who is the journalist and wants to get a story out of this situation in the tunnels, starts to go to you tube for her research and discover there is something going on underneath the train station which is the main series of tunnels in Sydney.

The next 30 minutes are the creep factor. You just know something is going to go down. As they head into these tunnels, that look like they were sets on Alien or Descent. This film just gives the viewer such a feeling, that something could go down at any time and has your attention. It builds the story and the suspense to such a point, that when it finally goes down, it feels like the letting go of a rubber band wrapped too tight around your wrist. And they do it so smart and creative, that you feel for the characters and are thrown into this situation with them. There is a scene that involves ringing a bell, that was such a simple yet effective scene. Esp. when they have the cutaway scene when Natalie gets to hear what the guys heard on the headphones when the bell rang.

The last 30 minutes was almost a Blair Witch meets Descent feel. I know there are so many found footage films and trapped in caves, tunnels or whatever films. But, the last 30 minutes of this film, with the scratched up camera lens and you having to get a glimpse of what may or may not be happening was just awesome. That this film almost felt like it owed the fans a slam ending that will get them talking, and it delivered. I had a blast with this little creep fest. This is a very slow burner, that picks up and delivers the goods for the patient fans.

All in all, this is one of the best found footage films I have seen in a very long time.

8.5 out of 10

Going into THE TUNNEL I was well aware of what the "monster" was. And not because I read the back of the box, or a review or had been recommended to it by a friend, but by simple math: TUNNEL + SCREAMING GREEN FACE = C.H.U.D. (1984). More than a few films over the years (THE DESCENT - 2005 - come first to mind) have gone back to this well about underground dwellers and what mutations and monsters might exist there. THE TUNNEL is no different, but, what drew to me it was the chance that maybe someone might finally expand upon the idea and deliver a well developed, unsettling take on this very real underground world that lives beneath a number of major cities around the world.

I was not unaware that we would be going down this hole as a "film", but more a "found footage" take on C.H.U.D. with possibilites - well, none of those possibilites were realized and what I got (and what you will find) is an overly padded flashback with more logic gaps than the bridge to nowhere. About half of this film is told in a Ken Burns fugue state with two of the principal cast talking either directly to the camera, or, even better, looking wistfully off in another direction with their own narration playing over their faces giving them the chance to show you Just. How. Serious. They're. Taking. It. This flashback style robs the film of 50% of its tension, leaving the rest a chaotic mess of stops and starts and of faces in extreme close up and their sneakers - seriously, either there's a face filling the frame of its the sneakers of the cmaeraman who simply forgets what his job is supposed to be about. The locations are not bad; but they quickly betray just how bland they are when they start to blend together. The whole idea here is, of course, that its very easy to get lost down in the tunnels, but I think its more the fact that they didn't have very much they could shoot, so the cast ends up running around in circles and shaking the camera to give you the feeling that this is a whole new section with fresh dangers and more dead ends than you can count.

That doesn't mean it doesn't hold the power to evoke a chill or two. One room in particular raises a host of questions that never get any answers (and owes a more than knowning nod to HOSTEL), leaving your mind to fill in the blanks while the cast move on to the next thing, which looks exactly like the last thing they just left. As for the "monster" the film moves quickly into [REC] (2007) territory here. If you're familiar with the original or the polished U.S. remake (Quarrantine - 2008), then you'll know we're deep into night vision country which is haunted by the silver, white glowing eyes of some chalk white goon stalking in the dark hunting for flesh...and also, in this case, eyes. The one true original turn here gets a quick look and pass by the filmmakers so they can get back to the flashback interviews and looking directly into people's faces and at their sneakers. There's a moment where it seems like they stumble across a oddball underground chruch made up of roots and stolen eyes and everyone takes a moment to Seriously. Freak. Out. and then their off leaving this good idea far behind...why? Running time is my guess.

The film doesn't even have the decency in the end to pay off its premise about a government cover-up (which is the kick off for the action) and its unclear from the "interviews" if the footage we're seeing actually survived their ordeal; because if it did, it proves their story completely, if not, then it's another cheat by the filmmakers to dodge having to actually resolve anything (which is the norm for these types of films - it frees to filmmakers from having to write an ending; all you need is a quick CUT TO black and roll of weak text wrap up and you're done, man!).

Either way, the entire experience of THE TUNNEL is worthless. It's so similar to everything that's come before it that even before you open the box you already know everything there is to know about it. Avoid.

First of all. Everybody who asks themselves whether the movie real or not, it is not, but it is based on some real events(and I really doubt it has anything to do with the monster in the deep of the underground). Visit their website at [...] and read more about this good scary movie. The story is 5/5(You won't believe how entertaining it was), creepiness is 5/5(It is really creepy in some places. Made me stop the movie a few times to continue to watch it), gore 2/5 (It was really unnecessary to have a lot of gore in the movie to make it look good). Actors in the movie played so really good, I was trying to catch them on bad acting and I didn't. As for the creature, if you really think it is real, think again. How can it move with such a speed in real life (you will see it incredibly well in one cut scene. No spoilers)? In other scenes it moved not with such a high speed as it was before in the beginning. Makes me wonder why would it suddenly move a lot slower compare to it's original speed. In the very end a paramedic was standing far from a dying person. How long was he standing there? Why didn't he run to help the person? A movie mistake? Maybe, maybe not. And finally when that already dead man was lying on the floor I didn't really notice who moved his leg. Maybe it was a movie mistake.
Verdict: Get the movie, you won't regret it. You can't go wrong with it.

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