An Homage to Great Horror

Rating: 8/10 (6 August 2006)

Neil Marshall is someone Hollywood horror movie makers should pay attention to. He managed in Dog Soldiers to make arguably the first believable, action-packed, modern werewolf film (the werewolves themselves were even realistic-great costumes!) and in Descent he manages to make you care about a bunch of girls who go spelunking and get eaten by blind, slimy cave crawlers.
Missing in a lot of low-budget horror, however good the scripts may be, is the elements of good film/video quality and good acting. The Descent has both. Marshall takes you right into the action from the very beginning, and takes plenty of time (but not too much) getting to know the characters. The jumpy moments aren't cued by the film score, and they're never when or what you expect. There's plenty of suspense and the sense of claustrophobia is so unbearable I had to let go of my fiancé's hand just to give myself some room to breathe.
People were literally screaming in the theatre--always a good sign. I saw the US release and liked the ending, though I've read conflicting reviews here that the UK ending was better. I also feel there are a lot of homages buried in the film. Elements of Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Deliverance, Carrie, Apocalypse Now are obvious...other scenes (the hospital) are eerily familiar and effective.
The only thing I would have liked for Marshall to have done differently is to set the film in Europe where it was filmed. I mean, come on. Can't inbred cave crawlers exist ANYWHERE in the world but in Appalachia? As a native of the region, I'm a bit tired of the stereotype. I mean, how in the world would a hot group of adventurous British babes ever find their way to the back woods of North Carolina? It would never happen. I'm just glad there were no banjos pickin' in the background.