The best horror film in years

Rating: 10/10 (14 February 2007)

If you want to be scared, "The Descent" is a movie for you. This movie is unlike recent horror movies. The recent horror films all seem to rely on either jump scenes or abundances of gore. In "The Descent," Neil Marshal has created a film that actually successfully mixes both gore and jumps, and at the same time gives you a feeling of tension throughout the entire movie. It would not be strange to say that this movie is the best horror film in a long time. Some people may even call it one of the scariest films ever.
A tragic accident occurs, leaving Sarah very traumatized. One year later, six female friends reunite for a caving expedition. Their adventure soon goes horribly wrong when a collapse traps them deep underground. To make things worst, they discover that some bloodthirsty cannibalized creatures are hunting them. As their friendships deteriorate, they find themselves in a desperate struggle to survive from not only the creatures but each other as well. Can all of them make it alive or will they all end up being snacks for the creatures?
This movie is intense. It starts out a little slow, during the first twenty-five minutes, in order to show a little character development, but after that, the roller coaster ride begins and it continues until the end credits. If you pretend that you are in the exact same situation as the females, you will relate to the characters and feel very claustrophobic. The feeling of claustrophobia will make you cheer for the females to escape this cave. Of course, their problem is not just exiting the cave, but also escaping from these cannibalistic creatures that live in the cave. Those creatures do not show up until about fifty minutes into the film but once they do, "The Descent" turns a completely new direction.
Since this movie is an all-female cast, surprisingly, it does not settle on the sex and nudity factor at all. Usually you get a movie that is mostly male dominated or else you usually get something that features the females in very limited clothing and many close up shots of their butts and chests. These women did not just run around screaming throughout the movie, they were tough and could easily take care of themselves. It is weird to see a horror movie that does not feature a women's sexuality. While the women were still very attractive, their looks were not the focal point of the movie.
Overall, "The Descent" was an amazing horror film. There is nothing to complain about in this film. It does not feature many of the typical horror movie clichés you would see in modern day horror films. It does its job in frightening the heck out of you. After viewing this movie, many people will probably take spelunking, or cave diving, off their "things to do before you die" list. "The Descent" is one of the best horror films in years. "The Descent" is extremely recommended!