Beast Beneath (2011) User Reviews

Beast Beneath: Not THAT bad

[Platypuschow · 4/10 · 17 August 2018]

Sadly this followed Seven Samurai (1954), how could any movie possibly follow Seven Samurai?

It tells the supposedly true story revolving around a curse, a monster and a girl searching for her ancestors gold. Any "True story" that involves a monster loses credibility immediatly.

The rating at time of writing is an abyssmal 2.8, it's not that bad at all but it's still pretty naff.

It makes best use of it's budget to the movies credit, it limits the amount you see the monster and places it wisely to mask it's limitations. The creators clearly knew what they were doing, but the lack of budget and questionable cast really damaged it.

This is one of those harmless enough films to burn away 90 minutes with, it's not terrible it just isn't very good either.

The Good:

Has it's moments

Plot is actually alright

Creators do a decent enough job with the minimal budget

The Bad:

Flaws left, right and centre

Head scratchingly stupid finale

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

The best types of homeless folk are pirates

The Beast is beneath a very boring movie, not worthy of being found

[movieman_kev · 2/10 · 15 May 2013]

In the 18th century, a blind girl curses the man who stole her father's land while he was on his deathbed. Generations later, a woman who shares the same bloodline finds an ancient map that leads to the under grounds of Griffith Park and treasure, but an evil monster awaits.

I found good long chunks of this film boring, which could've been alleviated if the characters were interesting or the acting was of such a quality that it kept my rapt attention. Neither is the case sadly and the films running time seemed to drag on so very slowly. Also it doesn't help that the wraparound of an old man telling all this to his "teenage" son is idiotic. Skip this one.

Streaming on Netflix as of 5/15/13

"What's the matter. Did I scare you"?

[lost-in-limbo · 2/10 · 19 February 2019]

Yeah it scared me for all the wrong reasons. "BEAST BENEATH" is something you might catch on late-night cable -- a feeble experience in terror. You know the kind which eventually puts you to sleep. Technically it's surprisingly sound for such a cheapie, yet this is an all-flat, long-winded ghost/creature-feature, of sorts. When I say, of sorts, you don't get much and when you do, you only see flashes of the beast (a cheap, scruffy looking werewolf costume) and those few attack scenes we do witness quickly cuts away from the full carnage. There are a few nasty looking facial / neck scratches (with better than expected latex work) and body limbs popping up here and there. And the odd eye ball too. But this fun is short-lived.

Being plot-heavy should be a positive, but when it's half-baked in its ideas, boringly acted (although a real test of patience is the over-the-top mugging of Bertie Higgins -- father of the director) and all this lethargic investigating about a curse and treasure taking up so much of the running time. It begins to take a toll, becoming a padded-out history lesson of a trip down memory lane. The fragmented story starts off as a modern-day wraparound campfire tale with a father telling his douche-bag teenage son the legend of a family curse, ancient map and a hidden ancestral treasure that was discovered in Los Angeles' Griffith Park. The same park they're camping in. And our beast just happens to be the protector of this treasure. Some say, it still haunts the area. So just wait around for one of *THOSE* endings.

IT'S JUST A HOMELESS GUY

[nogodnomasters · 3/10 · 19 April 2018]

Supposedly based on some kind of true tale about Griffith Park in LA being cursed by a blind woman who was robbed of the land by a last minute will change. Years later a descendant discovers a treasure map, a treasure protected by a ummm....guy in a dog suit? The characters were juvenile as was the plot. This felt like it was made for TV. Very low impact horror.

Part of a DVD 8 pack.

Honestly, it was too much for me!

[deacon_blues-3 · 1/10 · 2 August 2013]

This film was too bad for me to watch more than 30 minutes or so. The acting is the worst part. I didn't even wait to see the creature effects, but I'm sure they were horrendous. Who ever wrote or directed this POS should be ashamed of themselves. I think the point that put me over the edge was the introduction of Bertie Higgins as Homeless George. OMG! If a character ever fell flatter on a first appearance, I can't imagine it! Pul-eeze! I think this film was made with someone's iPhone or something. P-U! Movies this bad should be against the law. I had to laugh at how much clothing the Feliz girl was wearing while in bed with her boyfriend. Was she really cold, or what? The attempted sex scenes were complete wastes of film. Why do directors put these scenes into their movies? They obviously aren't about tantalizing the audience, since nothing ever happens! It would have been better to just have lone characters dealing with the creature, since it's so much easier to create a creepy atmosphere if the character is alone in the dark.

Solid Creature Feature with some odd ends

[hocfocprod · 7/10 · 23 June 2013]

This movie goes back and forth between horror and "teen quest" with the main characters trying to solve the mystery of an old family map. Overall the story is as good a reason as any to have a monster running around and the main characters are played well. The flashback sequences are excellent. They almost seem to be from a higher budgeted movie, but it may just be that "period piece" footage tends to look more polished when done correctly.

The creature itself isn't show stopping, but he's tough customer and shown sparingly enough to come across well. I like my monsters movies with a monster in them and this one delivers. The beast even has a purpose, although it seems to deviate from its motivation from time to time.

The wrap around story is completely unnecessary to the telling of the tale, with the possible exception that it was needed for feature length run time. The movie also suffers from a common horror movie shortcoming of not knowing it's over. Footage that would been have better used as credits overlay or extra material is used within the movie.

Overall, if you can't get enough of monster movies and SyFy's CG monstrosities are leaving you cold, give this one a spin.

Passable creature feature

[Woodyanders · 6/10 · 15 December 2020]

1861. Several thousand acres of land are stolen from its owner on his deathbed. The man's blind niece Petronilla (a fiery portrayal by Jessica Barbery) curses everyone involved. 150 years later a descendent of the man finds a map for a hidden treasure that's guarded by a lethal monster.

While director/co-writer Julian Higgins keeps the fairly enjoyable story moving along at a reasonable pace, maintains a generally serious tone throughout, and delivers a satisfying smattering of splatter, he alas lets the narrative meander too much as well as fails to generate any essential tension or creepy atmosphere. Moreover, the monster attacks are too infrequent and the ending can be spotted from a mile away. Fortunately, the decent acting from the competent cast keeps this film watchable, with an especially lively and amusing turn from co-writer Bertie Higgins as the flaky Homeless George. An okay diversion.