An Excellent Descent

Rating: 10/10 (17 October 2005)

The Descent is a 2005 British horror movie by director Neil Marshall, whose only other notable outing is 2002's Dog Soldiers. It stars 6 unknown British (and 1 Australian?) actresses, who go on a caving expedition in the Appalachian mountains. It's clearly a low-budget film. Oh, and yes, it's ABSOLUTELY GREAT!! I don't want to reveal too much of the plot, except for the above description, and of course that as soon as they descent into the cave, woeful things start a-happening. I went in with that knowledge, and found that it suited quite well.
The Descent follows the classic blueprint of the horror film, but with a few ingenious deviations. It also incorporates elements from the psychological thriller, mainly concerning Sarah, who can be described as one of the two main characters, and does so with great results. As I said, this film is mainly a horror film, with all its accompanying startle-scenes and gore, but it admirably avoids all encounters with the realm of clichés and cheesiness. I got so disturbed during this movie ("scared" isn't the right word, and so isn't "freaked out", "disturbed" is the best choice) that at around minute 70-75 out of the whole 99 minutes this movie takes, I just wanted to leave. That, and this was the first film in at least 10 years (since I was 13) in which I screamed in the theater. As the movie progressed, and I could see a "scene" coming on, I just wanted it to be over with. That's because each one of the scare-scenes is so perfectly balanced and immaculately timed to create the maximum effect, without ever becoming routinely or dull, like way too many of today's horror films. The cinematography also does a great deal to elevate each scene beyond the ordinary in films of this genre.
The human element in this movie is also well constructed and never too cheesy. Which leads me to the acting. First of all, having only women as the protagonists of a film often becomes contrived or artificial, due to the filmmakers' knowledge that they're not using men like almost always. In this film, however, the characterisation is perfectly natural, the female characters never feel too "objectified", that is, there only to look tough and sexy, or too "feminist", that is, too aware that they're the protagonists of a story and therefore must use the opportunity to show how strong women can be. The characters feel real, and aren't stereotypically good or bad. Each person has her defining elements, but never becomes two-dimensional.
All in all, The Descent is the best horror film in many, many years, and a long-awaited rejuvenation of the genre. 5 out of 5.