The Story of the Scariest Film You've Never Seen

Background

In 2010, UCLA film student Taylor Underwood raised $44,000 to direct, produce, and star in a film for which he wrote a script titled Momentum: Down (sometimes called Momentum: Elevator Down). It is a science-fiction / found-footage zombie apocalypse movie filmed entirely on location in and around the now demolished 30-story Turner Enterprises building in Downtown Los Angeles.

For the project, Underwood recruited fellow UCLA film student Samir Navuluri to serve as co-producer, editor, set designer, and sound editor. The remainder of the cast and crew was compiled from among Underwood’s friends and coworkers, as well as through advertisements posted online. Underwood promised each participant “$200, a chest of cheap beer, and an unforgettable moviemaking experience”, and reportedly received over 1,000 responses. The live portions of the film were shot during just a three-week period during April and May 2010, and digital editing and post-production took an additional six weeks. The film was made entirely without a musical score, and was released independently online on November 1, 2010.

Plot

Using mostly stock footage, the first portion of film (referred to by Underwood as “Act 1”) is a series of vignettes in downtown Los Angeles in which a zombie outbreak has just occurred during rush hour. The infection is shown to move at an almost instantaneous rate, with transformations taking place within minutes or seconds of a bite. For the most part Act 1’s footage follows the “first wave” of the outbreak, largely in a gridlocked section of the city, in which a small group of zombies appears from an alley and attacks a couple walking down the sidewalk. Shortly afterward, a family is seen being dragged out of their car and partially devoured. Minutes later the same family, now fully transformed, does the same to the family in another car. The cinematography starts with extreme close-ups of the zombies and victims, and then it slowly but consistently retreats to greater distances, the visual style mirroring the quickly widening contagion.

As the infection spreads, some begin to flee their vehicles while a clearly informed, heavily-armed group of vigilantes appears from the other side of the street and fires into the terror-stricken crowd, killing a number of zombies. However, they underestimate the speed at which the infection is spreading, failing to turn the tide of the transformations. It is at this point, when zombies reach the vigilante group and begin to transform them rapidly, that the camera pans up, as from a crane or drone, and follows the spread as it proceeds, growing ever larger by the minute, toward downtown.

The zombie horde becomes a mob and fires take hold of surrounding buildings and vehicles as vigilantes throw explosives and flammable items at the infected. At one notable point there is a fuzzy image of a strange creature running through the crowd. It is a dwarflike monster, with the appearance of a winged gargoyle, and as it moves there is the impression that some of the zombies are following it, perhaps obeying an unvoiced command. It disappears as the “drone” moves away, and the expanded aerial view of unfolding carnage continues for several minutes, eventually coming to focus on a high-rise building, where it zooms in through the lit window on the 27th floor.

Now entirely in live-action format and using wide-angle HD cameras, several vigilantes, armed mostly with 9mm MP5 submachine guns, pour out of the floor’s two elevators and into the reception area of a business (“Cutter Dentistry”, according to logos on the walls and front desk). They attempt to gather all the business’ employees into the center of the room while the presumed leader, Jack (played by Underwood), shouts orders to the largely female staff to shut down the elevators and set up a quarantine.

Before the instructions can be followed, however, one of the vigilantes collapses from the result of an unseen bite, and within seconds he arises, fully transformed, and attacks a second vigilante, who attempts to shoot him. The effort is unsuccessful, and during the process he inadvertently shoots one of the female employees instead, who transforms almost instantly. For several more minutes the attacks and chaos continue, and while some of the zombies are killed, equal innocents are turned. After mounting a brief but impressive counteroffensive, Jack himself finally succumbs to a particularly violent and bloody attack by several zombies, pinned against the glass window overlooking the smoldering city, and the remaining office staff are left helpless as the horde comes for them. The final HD shot is of a zombie reaching for one of the female employees in first-person view. The woman (Jeanette Hildeberg of San Francisco) screams off-camera, and the movie presumably ends with a full 30-second blackout, as the scream echoes.

“Act 2” of the movie is a collection of lower-grade scenes, and it records the activity of the film’s cast and crew as they celebrate having shot the final scene of the zombie movie. There is a shout of “Cut!” and the character of “Jack” arises out of character, as Underwood. He throws his hands into the air and proclaims, “The best $44,000 ever spent!”, to which the rest of the cast and crew cheer, including the “zombie” who had reached for the camera at the end (actor James Jolly of San Diego).

During this shift, a number of people can be seen in the office space, including Underwood, Jolly, Hildeberg, four sound crew, and eight actors. There is also a female with long red hair, dressed in white, who can be seen behind the front desk, either painting the wall or straightening one of the “Cutter Dentistry” signs. One of the cast members produces a cellular phone and begins to film the celebration, as congratulations are shared and Underwood opens a bottle of champagne.

In contrast to the “movie” portion of the film, there is a great deal of dialogue during this section. While much of it is indecipherable, the cast member shooting with his phone’s camera (Gordy Fontaine) is clearly heard shouting, “We should have an orgy!” toward two female actors who are embracing (Trisha Ericson and Hildeberg) while awkwardly attempting to record their reactions. Two or three of the male actors shout and hoot and Ericson scoffs disgustedly, but Hildeberg’s response is visibly more ambiguous, as she smiles and seems to consider the suggestion. Sensing Hildeberg’s uncertainty, Fontaine sharpens his phone’s focus exclusively on her and proceeds to taunt her further about the possibility of an orgy.

Meanwhile, the footage switches back and forth between three separate, fixed security cameras: two in the lobby and one by the elevators. After several minutes of varied unrelated conversation, including personal input from several actors regarding the “cheapness” of their movie, Underwood surprises everyone with a declaration that the “three ice chests” of beer that he brought for tonight are waiting downstairs in the lot. The majority of personnel express the desire for an immediate distraction, and the “final zombie” (Jolly) yells out that everyone should go down and take as little equipment with them as possible, offering to return later with volunteers to collect it.

The security cameras show another round of cheers, and just as the first people begin rushing to the elevators, there is an abrupt change to a black screen with white text. The text reads: “The woman by the far wall wasn’t part of the crew”, referring to the individual with long red hair who was either painting or straightening the advertisements. In a follow-up black screen with white text, another message reads: “It was later revealed that she was an employee of the former business here, and had died two weeks earlier.”

This moves the film into what Underwood called “Act 3”. When next we see the cast and crew, most have already left (the mystery girl in white has disappeared also), leaving nine members as they head toward the elevators together. Among them are Underwood, Fontaine, Ericson, Hildeberg, Jolly, two camera crew, and two female actors. Jolly, still in his zombie makeup and attire, mockingly chases Underwood into the unlit portion of the hall past the elevators, out of sight. The elevator-based security camera, which is significantly darker than those in the reception area, shows the two camera crewmen (carrying equipment) and the two female actors entering the near elevator. One crewman yells angrily into the darkness at the end of the hall that Underwood and Jolly should quit playing around so they can go get drunk, while Ericson, Hildeberg, and Fontaine move toward the far elevator.

The camera switches back to Fontaine’s still-recording cell phone as he enters the elevator. Hildeberg has her arm around Ericson’s shoulder, and Fontaine initiates a notable sequence of “crawling” up Hildeberg’s arm at extreme closeup, moving slowly towards her face in almost complete silence, much like the initial shots of the zombies at the beginning of the movie. Throughout this series, Hildeberg is smiling obscurely, presumably at a thought, or possibly something Ericson has whispered, but she is, curiously, either oblivious to Fontaine’s movements on her arm or strangely permissive of them, even as the phone sits on her shoulder and freezes very close to her face for almost a full minute. At that moment, just as the elevator doors are closing, Underwood reappears, acting as though he is deathly afraid. “They’re coming! I’m being eaten!” he shouts, holding the doors open for a brief minute. Ericson berates him for scaring her, and Underwood [believably] acts as though he is suddenly being yanked away by the “zombie”, allowing the doors to close.

As the three in the elevator wait for it to move, they talk about the planned demolition of the building, and how they wish to watch it, in Fontaine’s words, “because I’ve never seen anything collapse, except my acting career.” But after a few minutes have gone by, they realize the elevator hasn’t moved. Fontaine presses the lobby button again but nothing happens. Then the lights flicker, and all three people become silent.

Ericson tells Fontaine to “just open the doors”, and Fontaine presses that button, but again nothing happens. At this moment, Hildeberg’s arm retreats and Ericson admits she is nervous as she doesn’t like elevators to begin with; simultaneously there is a low rattle, and a moment later we hear a high-pitched squeal followed by what sounds like a muffled human scream. The group hushes each other and Ericson asks if the sound came from the elevator next to them. They believe it is free-falling 27 floors.

The lights flicker again, and there is another tremor in the elevator. All three begin to panic just as the elevator shudders once more, with violence. Seconds later, the lights go off entirely, and as the group begins to grab the door in a frantic effort to open it manually, there is a metallic squeal, and the elevator clearly starts to free-fall. Within the total blackness, Hildeberg’s piercing scream can be heard, a scream much louder and more harrowing than that which she had delivered with her “death” at the end of the “movie” portion of the film.

There is a full minute of black screen this time (twice the length of the ending to Act 1), as the bloodcurdling cry echoes. The film then ends without any credits.

Death of Hildeberg and Injury of Navuluri

Adding to the mystery and hype of the film were two separate, strange occurrences that happened within months of its release. At around 10pm on November 17, 2010, Jeanette Hildeberg was killed in a single-vehicle accident on Highway 1, ten miles north of Santa Cruz. While driving her 2004 Scion, she lost control and plunged 27 feet into a gulley. The airbags failed to deploy and she died instantly. Interestingly, a second passenger, 24-year old Rose Quentin, also of San Francisco, survived with only minor injuries. Her airbags had deployed successfully.

Following an investigation, it was determined that there was no logistical reason for the airbags to have failed; also, the explanation for Hildeberg having lost control remains unknown, as she was not speeding, and although it was dark, the roads were not wet. Quentin later claimed that Hildeberg had been “terrified of something she saw on the road”, and had swerved to evade it, fishtailing into the railing and sliding over the ridge. Quentin has since maintained that she was watching the road directly ahead at the time and saw nothing to warrant the swerve. Clips of Hildeberg’s passive but curious expressions have appeared in memes where she is often referred to with the hashtag “#Orgygirl” or “#Orgyghostgirl”.

In another incident, on December 24, 2010, the film’s co-producer Samir Navuluri broke three vertebrae in his back by falling off the roof of a friend’s house in Mesa, Arizona while installing a satellite dish. Navuluri claims he was struck by lightning, and while his descriptions were consistent with those of a lightning strike, NOAA reports indicated only clear skies in the area at the time. Navuluri’s body did show mild signs of having been electrified, but it has been theorized that this was due to exposed ungrounded wiring within the satellite dish. Navuluri remained comatose for two days, underwent two surgeries, and was permanently paralyzed. Rumors that the surgeries totaled exactly $44,000 are likely unrealistic, yet they persist.

Reception and Analysis

Momentum: Down was largely well-received by critics, who praised the original script, cinematography, and pace of the film. Reviews were mixed regarding the choice to not include music, the overindulgence of stock footage and obvious green screens to detail the zombie outbreak, and the minimal length (the final blackout occurs at the 72-minute mark). Acts 2 and 3 have received much more approval than Act 1, with positive attention being delivered to the cast’s acting during the sequences when they are presumably not acting, as well as the feeling of unease that pervades a series of scenes that have very little action.

In a 2011 interview with Bloody Disgusting, Underwood said: “It’s inexplicable, this feeling of dread that begins to mount. There’s no reason for it. The movie supposedly ends, but then it doesn’t. It keeps going. You’re like, ‘Why the hell are we seeing this? What else is supposed to happen here?’ And then when you see the cheap-a*s $2 placard about the girl in white, and the two idiots are running around chasing each other, you start to think, ‘Oh, s**t. Something’s not right here.’ So by the time they’re all on the elevator, it’s clear something is going to happen. You just don’t know what. But by then it’s too late. You’re actually stuck in there with them.”

“It’s terrifying, the fear of being trapped when you don’t know what’s going on,” said Jolly during the same interview. “That’s what we tried to get across. You’re having a great time, but then something happens that’s obviously beyond your control, beyond all explanation even, and it freaks you the hell out. And without a way to escape, it sends you all the way down to primal emotions, something from the id. That’s why I love the title. It doesn’t ‘sound’ like a scary title, but once you get it, you realize there’s this momentum that just starts to plummet in those last 20 or 30 minutes. And then, you know, it happens literally. It’s awesome.”

“What about this perfect face would make you scared?” said Underwood, referring to the extreme close-up of Hildeberg near the end of the film. “It’s a crazy phenomenon that we as humans experience. Here’s this gorgeous, quiet girl, just sitting there while you stare at her from like six inches away. And you can’t tell if it’s excitement or terror; all you know is your heart’s racing, and one way or another something’s going to happen. Why is that? Where does that come from?”

Fellow actor Gordy Fontaine was one of the cast members most deeply affected by the death of Hildeberg. When asked about their relationship in a 2012 interview for the horror podcast Pseudopod, Fontaine replied, “She never said much, and she certainly never complained. For that last scene, we turned out all the lights �" and it really was pitch black in there. We tried the screams a couple times, and then Taylor told her, ‘You need to scream louder. Imagine you’re being disemboweled alive. Claw your belly with your fingernails and feel your intestines being grabbed.’ And somehow she did it, no questions asked, on the very next try. She pulled out that goddamned scream, the worst thing ever, the worst sound on Earth. It made me feel sick. It still makes me sick, it’s in my head forever. She would have done anything. She could have done anything.” Momentum: Down remains Fontaine’s only acting credit, and he has since sworn he will not act again, paralleling his character’s complaint of an unsuccessful career.

Legacy

In 2013, the film was picked up by the obscure Swedish distributor Edge Entertainment. Following a limited but successful run in midnight showings, Buena Vista EU purchased the rights for select European distribution, where it gained notoriety as an art-horror film. Its parent company, Buena Vista International, released the movie throughout Europe, Asia, and Japan in home media and digital formats. It has since gained cult status, and while physical copies are difficult to find in the US, unlicensed bootlegged versions can be downloaded by P2P bit torrents and occasional YouTube uploads. Its scarcity continues adding to its hype, and as of this publication there are no plans for distribution within the US.