Dive Below The Surface With These 10 Subterranean Horror Movies
Josh Millican
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Underground horror is a small but scrappy subgenre—and one of my personal favorites. My debut novel, Deeper Than Hell (arriving June 14th via Encyclopocalypse Publications), was heavily inspired by both literature and film. So, let’s dive below the surface of the Earth with a list of my favorite subterranean horror movies! Dig in below the synopsis for Deeper Than Hell!
Synopsis:
Drugs. Delirium. Damnation. When rock bottom is just the beginning, you’re bound to end up Deeper Than Hell. Fever dreams and conspiracy theories collide in an epic nightmare inspired by William S. Burroughs and Clive Barker. Follow a modern-day Dante and Virgil on a vision quest from the streets of Las Vegas, past subterranean cults and feral colonies, past the military facilities at Wonderland, past any semblance of sanity. There’s life underground!
The book has already enjoyed pre-release praise from horror luminaries such as Mick Garris, who’s called it
“A dark and deeply observed tale of drugs and dementia, starting in a very grounded world of addiction and melting down into a phantasmagoria of beautifully rendered madness… a drug-fueled nightmare that feels all too real, and not for the faint of heart!”
It’s received further praise from Hellbound: Hellraiser II writer Pete Atkins, who calls it “A richly imagined psychotropic mashup of transgressive horror and visionary world-building, leavened with humor and seasoned with gore.”
You can pre-order your Kindle copy of Deeper Than Hell today at http://mybook.to/DeeperThanHell. You can order your paperback copy beginning June 14th! Now, let’s dig into some of the films that pair perfectly with the novel.
C.H.U.D. (1984, Directed by Douglas Cheek)
C.H.U.D. may be the butt of a million jokes, but the 1980s-era creature feature is better than it usually gets credit for. While it’s easy to see the B-movie schlock of it all, C.H.U.D. contains scathing social commentary while unfolding more like a procedural than your typical horror offering. The idea of cannibalistic, humanoid creatures dwelling beneath our city streets was a major influence on Deeper Than Hell, which is why I gave C.H.U.D. an official shout-out in Chapter 3!
The Descent (2006, Directed by Neil Marshall)
You can’t talk about subterranean horror movies without mentioning Neil Marshall’s shocker, The Descent. While the film is filled with monsters, the lifeless, claustrophobia-inducing cave system is perhaps the most terrifying antagonist. Fueled by powerhouse performances from a predominantly female cast and a script flush with genuine drama, The Descent is a movie that will torment you and leave you shaken. The sequel, not so much!
The Cave (2005, Directed by Bruce Hunt)
On paper, Bruce Hunt’s The Cave looks a lot like Neil Marshall’s The Descent. Both films center on groups of intrepid spelunkers who encounter something inhuman deep underground. What sets The Cave apart, however, adding another layer of terror, is that these explorers aren’t just underground—they’re underwater! In addition to creature terror and the intense claustrophobia, the characters in The Cave have to worry about running out of oxygen as well. Please ignore the film’s 12% Rotten Tomatoes score. It really is an exciting, harrowing horror experience that’s worthy of your time.
As Above, So Below (2014, Directed by John Erick Dowdle)
A film set in the infamous underground catacombs of Paris? Irresistible to this particular horror fan! What’s more, John Erick Dowdle’s As Above, So Below and Deeper Than Hell both use Dante’s Inferno as a parallel allegory. And while it’s just as claustrophobic and dizzying as The Descent and The Cave, there’s a spiritual/supernatural aspect to As Above, So Below that puts it in a league of its own. It’s a movie that benefits from multiple viewings and was definitely influential to the mood and aesthetic of my debut novel.
Creep (2005, Directed by Christopher Smith)
No, not the found-footage horror movie directed by Patrick Brice and starring Mark Duplass (great film, by the way). I’m talking about 2005’s Creep, directed by Christopher Smith (Severance, Triangle, Black Death). Creep is a gory blend of slasher and creature feature tropes that takes place in the labyrinthine tunnels of London’s underground subway. I love the idea of unimaginable horrors lurking just beyond the well-lit platforms. Creep’s script is tense with social commentary (specifically dealing with homelessness), the characters are fleshed out and believable, and the main antagonist is beyond unnerving. Creep never got the props it deserved, so check out this underrated subterranean gem ASAP!
The Midnight Meat Train (2008, Directed by Ryuhei Kitamura)
Clive Barker was a huge influence on Deeper Than Hell. In fact, Chapter 3 centers on an underground cult of “real Cenobites”. But since the Hellraiser films don’t take place underground specifically, I’m including The Midnight Meat Train on this list. The Midnight Meat Train is based on Barker’s short story of the same name, and was directed by Ryuhei Kitamura (Downrange, Nightmare Cinema). Like Creep, it takes place in a subway system (in this case, New York’s) but quickly turns far off the beaten path. While deeply rooted in the slasher subgenre, The Midnight Meat Train becomes absolutely Lovecraftian by its conclusion. Another tragically underrated creeper, The Midnight Meat Train features Bradley Cooper (before he was a superstar) with choice cameos from Brooke Shields and Ted Raimi.
10 Cloverfield Lane (2014, Directed by Dan Trachtenberg)
One of the themes I explore in Deeper Than Hell is the idea of people abandoning society in order to create a new life below the surface, and there’s a subset of the subterranean horror subgenre that deals with this concept as well. I’m talking about bomb shelter horror, and I’ve got three films to recommend from this subset. In 10 Cloverfield Lane, Howard (played by John Goodman) retreats into a deluxe bomb shelter after fearing an alien invasion. His shelter-mates, Michelle and Emmet (played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead and John Gallagher Jr.) are never 100% sure whether or not to believe him—and that’s where a lot of the film’s terror comes from: Uncertainty.
The Hole (2001, Directed by Nick Hamm)
There are a few horror movies called The Hole, so to be clear, I’m talking about the one released in 2001, directed by Nick Hamm and starring Thora Birch. Like 10 Cloverfield Lane, the bulk of this film takes place in a bomb shelter. But that’s pretty much where the similarities end. There’s nothing extraterrestrial or supernatural about The Hole; the film unfolds as more of a drama and a mystery. The cast is comprised of young adults, like many mainstream horror offerings. Still, the film manages to produce palpable dread and claustrophobia while exploring themes of deception and obsession. Another underrated film that Time seems to have forgotten, dig into The Hole at your earliest convenience.
The Divide (2011, Directed by Xavier Gens)
The third bomb shelter horror movie on this list, The Divide, is the most extreme and definitely not for the timid. It’s exactly what you would expect from director Xavier Gens (Frontier(s)), one of the architects of the New French Extremity subgenre, a style known for its brutality and nihilism. Nuclear war is a reality in The Divide, and the stakes for a random collection of characters who find themselves in a grimy shelter below a New York apartment building couldn’t be higher. The Divide sports some hefty star power with Lauren German, Michael Biehn, Milo Ventimiglia, and Rosanna Arquette as part of the ensemble cast. Still, The Divide is a film that deserves a trigger warning and should not be viewed by the faint of heart.
Nightbreed (1990, Directed by Clive Barker)
I’ve already mentioned that Clive Barker is one of the primary inspirations for Deeper Than Hell, so it seemed appropriate to conclude this list with another one of the Master’s horror movies. Barker directed Nightbreed from a screenplay he also wrote, based on his novel Cabal. The film focuses on a society of “monsters” who live underground, beneath an abandoned cemetery in a city called Midian. Epic in scope and descending into the realms of dark fantasy, Nightbreed was decades ahead of its time, both visually and thematically. The film stars Craig Sheffer as Aaron Boone, an artist with a mysterious connection to Midian, and David Cronenberg as Dr. Philip K. Decker. It’s one of the most terrifying slashers ever committed to celluloid. While rumors of a Nightbreed television series never seem to materialize, the film remains a true cult classic that stands the test of time and never disappoints.
Deeper Than Hell arrives in paperback on June 14th via Encyclopocalypse Publications (https://encyclopocalypse.com/). You can pre-order your Kindle copy now at http://mybook.to/DeeperThanHell. We’re also planning a signing event in July at Dark Delicacies in Burbank, CA. Follow me on Twitter at @josh_millican for details as they are announced!
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