An Unmissable Descent into Terror (excuse the pun)

Rating: 9/10 (7 April 2007)

In "The Descent" six girlfriend gather for their yearly caving adventure - only this time, one of the girls has discovered some caves which do not appear on any map - pity for them, as their fun adventure turns into a terrifying fight for their lives as they encounter some deadly sub-human creatures.
So what is so fantastic about "The Descent" then? Well, the acting for a start. All six young women are talented actresses who bring their respective characters to life. Shauna MacDonald plays the troubled Sarah, Natalie Mendoza is the over-achieving Juno, Alex Reid portrays the comely Beth, Saskia Mulder is the lovely Rebecca, and MyAnna Buring plays her sensitive sister, while Nora-Jane No one rounds out the cast as newcomer Holly.
Secondly, the wait. You know something is going to happen, but the film does take a little while for the action and tension to begin. But it does have a sense of morbidness right from the beginning. "The Descent", like many horror films, uses a back story, in this case a tragic event that happened one year earlier to Sarah, which plays an important part throughout the film.
However, what's most memorable about "The Descent" though is the terror that quite literally surrounds the cast when they are in these mysterious new caverns. And it's not just the mysterious sub-human like creatures - but the caverns themselves which prove to be dangerous for the trapped girls. People with claustrophobia should be cautioned before watching this film! The gore is brutal - there's no doubt about that, and as most of the girls, particularly Juno and Sarah, put up great fights against the creatures, the gore - blood, guts, everything - is plentiful - but without being distasteful. Particularly disturbing scenes include when Sarah falls into the pit of blood, the death scene where - I won't name her - is still alive and watching as the creatures begin to eat her, and a climatic and deadly encounter between two of the girls.
"The Descent" combines the best parts of horror films and wraps them all into one tightly produced masterpiece - if the creatures don't get you, the caves certainly will.