Since the Blair Witch project struck the cinemas, the sub-genre Found Fetging has been a popular choice for horror directors. However, although there have been a few exceptions over the years, the former popular trope has since become a generic and repugnant gadget, worn out by rehearsal and a lack of innovation. What was formerly terrifying is often presents as a lazy filmmaker, with trembling cameras replacing the suspense, thin characters of paper hidden behind night vision filters and a forced leap is scary which undermines any authentic atmosphere. However, from time to time, some films prove that the format always has creative potential.
Turned on a stop budget and distributed online via a crowdfunding model, The tunnel It’s not exactly new in the genre, equipped with the same visuals and the same documentary configuration fans. However, he has several points in his favor, namely a closely written script, a chosen rhythm and a feeling of realism which raises him above the usual imitators with low effort. With a 100% note on rotten tomatoes and a cult that continues to grow, The tunnel is a perfect example of how the images found, when they are well made, can always frighten viewers.
The tunnel is as above so below meets the descent
A documentary style horror, The tunnel is built from interviews and found images. The story follows a team of news based in Sydney investigating the sudden abandonment of a government project to reuse underground water tunnels during a drought. Suspecting a concealment of the government for the stopping of the project and the disappearances of several homeless people, the investigative journalist Natasha Warner (Bel Delia) and her team descend into the abandoned tunnels to discover the truth. While underground, the crew discovers a humanoid creature which abandoned the air raid of the Second World War houses its ruthless house.
The tunnel was the first film to be released via the Bittorrent network, available for free worldwide.
One by one, the crew members disappear, forcing the group to count with the reality of what tracks them. Isolated in the black labyrinth, their attempts to escape are hampered by panic, quarrels and the terrifying speed of the creature. The recovered images, combined with post-tackle interviews with the members of the surviving crew, offer a fragmented and haunting record of a story that has never been supposed to surface. The tunnel East A claustrophobic and slow combustion horror that offers everything that fans expect from the sub-genre with additional precision.
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The tunnel is a low -budget minimalism at its best
The tunnel is one of the few horror films that reveals its survivors at the start, thanks to its false documentary format. Surprisingly, it works. The interest of the film is not death, gore, jump fears or all that is typical of the genre, but simply its frame and its atmosphere. And, as the saying says, sometimes the less it is more. The tunnel Minimalism is its greatest strength. As expected, there are a few nervous moments throughout the film, but the majority of his horror comes from the invisible.
The creature, when seen, hides like ephemeral silhouettes or fuzzy night vision, too short to prove to be fully, but intense enough to generate fear. There is also very little about the creature and its background. It is presumed that it is a product of toxic waste and that Sydney polluted the metro, but it is due to viewers to draw their own conclusions. Instead, director Carlo Ledesma and his team let the tunnels themselves do the work, with long periods of darkness, corridors filled with water and the distant echoes of the creature’s grunts.
Because of its online release, the film was only presented in a single theater in Australia, making only $ 1,532. Most of the film’s monetary gain came from donations and purchases in its online souvenir shop.
There are several problems with the format of sequences found. First, one of the biggest frustrations among fans is the reason why the cameras are underway. Coast is great in its history, but HUD’s excessive determination to film every moment is not used for intrigue. The reasonable option would have been to remove the camera and run, and this is the problem that many viewers have with the sub-genre. Too often, it requires the suspension of disbelief without offering a reason for the images to exist.
The second problem is the trembling camera movements that make the characters follow up. While some films intentionally use it to evoke panic, Harvest Being a successful example, others make it too much to the point of frustration. The gallowsFor example, is known for his work as a disorienting camera, with entire sequences made incoherent due to implacable tremors. In the same way, The devil inside fails to find a balance, with distracting pockets. In these cases, the format does not serve history but the obscura, being insufficiently used as a gadget.
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Fortunately, The tunnel Avoid both problems. The camera is left over all the time that they are underground, but, as one of the characters points out, it is used only for light. He then revealed that the creature fears the light, so that the characters keep the camera to use its infrared mode and its integrated torch as a means of protection. Although the intention was the source of filming everything for journalism, this motivation quickly disappears once survival becomes the priority.
In a rare moment of logic in the kind of sequences found, the characters recognize that there is no more value to continue to record. They discuss deactivate the camera, but eventually make it work for safety. It is almost refreshing to watch a film of sequences found which respects the intelligence of its audience. Another refreshing aspect of The tunnel is his camera work. Once the crew discovers the fear of the light of the creature, they hide in an old refuge of the Second World War for most of its execution time.
This alone minimizes the risk of trembling camera movements, and when the characters run from the creature, the images remain clear. The scenes filmed in almost total darkness are reinforced by the intelligent use of infrared and thermal imaging, and the moments of action linger just long enough to record the movements before immersing themselves in uncertainty. The result is an experience of sequences that feels immersive without being disorienting and realistic without sacrificing clarity. It is a rare balance that many sub-genre films fail to find.
The tunnel was a crowdfunding success
In addition to being the first film to be released on the Bittorrent network, The tunnel was also the first Australian horror film to be funded by funding. The film’s financing model, nicknamed the “$ 1 per frame” campaign, invited donors to buy individual film executives for producer credits. With 135,000 images, the initiative collected $ 135,000 AUD (approximately 87.6 thousand USD). Although it did not reach the full objective, the campaign managed to generate enough funding to finish production. At a time when crowdfunding was still a relatively new concept, The tunnel Independent filmmakers could take advantage of online communities to get around traditional funding.
The film has raised 25 million views and downloads on the Internet. It is estimated that this is the equivalent of a box office of $ 250 million.
The tunnel received international attention not only for its content, but for the way it was published. Rather than opting for a conventional strategy in the cinema, the filmmakers launched the film simultaneously on several platforms, including the DVD, television and digital download in May 2011. It was presented to the cinemas of events in Sydney via Popcorn Taxi, while becoming the first film to be legally distributed via the Bittorrent Loss-to-Perer network. The release was facilitated in collaboration with Vodo and Bittorrent Inc., which makes the film available for free worldwide. This digital digital strategy was daring for its time and earned the film an important media coverage to challenge the traditional distribution model of industry.
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Although its Australian theatrical race was limited, projections would have attracted full houses and the film found a wider audience via Showtime Australia and Physical Home Media Ordays. Above all, the film was a major success, currently having a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Many criticisms have praised the effective use of the film by the film, applauding the authenticity of its underground frame, spaces, or even sees in Australian cinema. Performances have also been congratulated, in particular the realism brought by the distribution, which included a real cameraman which helped to increase the quality of the film.
In the years that followed its release, The tunnel continued to build a following cult, presented on several occasions in lists of horror fans highlighting the most frightening models and underestimated Australian horror films. While fans of the sub-genre can hesitate to watch another horror of sequences found, The tunnel is proof that the format is not dead. For horror fans jaded by formula studio efforts, The tunnel Offers refreshing independent horror that prioritizes narration, avoiding the tropes that afflict so much from its peers. For those looking for a horror experience without jumping or frustration of a trembling camera, this 14 -year -old gem deserves to be discovered.
