The Descent: One of the Best Horror Films Ever and Scariest Movie Ever Made

Rating: 9/10 (20 March 2007)

The Descent
I made a review on this movie before but I didn't think it summed it up enough.
I'm not exaggerating when I say that this is easily the most horrifying and best horror film since Silence of the Lambs.
I have to admit when I first saw trailers for this movie, it looked horrible. I had already seen Neil Marshall's other horror film Dog Soldiers which also looked horrible but was pretty good actually. Then I saw great reviews for this movie. I picked it up and with still low expectations watched it.
I was in awe of how well done it was. There were flaws like in any movie. But this movie just did great. I got the unedited version with special features.
Plot: It is a very simple plot. But that does not mean it is a bad plot. This movie wouldn't have worked with a complex plot. Although theories have been developed over parts of the movie but I not going into that. They have many references throughout the movie to different horror films, the biggest ones being, Deliverence, Alien, The Shining, and from what I see The Thing.
Acting: When you look at the beginning credits, I will guarantee you that 95% of you people won't recognize a single actor or actress. This is in no way a bad thing. It gives a more documentary feel making the movie that much creepier. The acting was superb. Except for one scene it is an all female cast. All the girls play their parts beautifully and very convincingly. Special attention should be payed to Shauna MacDonald, Natalie Mendoza, and Alex Reid. These actresses really put all they had into it. Neil Marshall starts slow but he does it well by putting character development so that we will feel for the characters.
Horror: This was easily the scariest horror film since Silence of the Lambs. With almost zip humor except for a few scenes at the beginning, they use almost the entire movie for horror. Neil used all forms of horror. If your claustrophobic as I am you will be creeped out. They use tense moments with a lot of suspense such as the blood testing sequence in The Thing. They use many jump sequences. The gore level is highly intense and some will be nauseated. However, the level is realistic. It's not someone falling down a rock chasm and walking with a scratch, they made it hard to watch but creepy. The creatures were awesome. A Gollum look alike, they used costumes and body paint which made them creepier because they looked more human.
Overall a sensational horror film which should be considered a classic. If you're going to rent or buy, get the unedited, because it is no more violent than the edited version, but the edited cuts about 90 seconds from the unedited original ending leaving you confused. The unedited clears it up and has the special features.
After seeing this and Dog Soldiers, I can safely say that Neil Marshall is the new and modern John Carpenter.
8.5/10