Claustrophobia, Anyone?

Rating: 9/10 (5 April 2008)

After the wild Army guys-vs.-werewolves ride that was DOG SOLDIERS, I was hoping that British director Neil Marshall would top himself with his next outing, and boy, was I NOT disappointed! I can guarantee that lovers of tough-chicks-kicking-ass-extravaganzas like ALIENS, the TERMINATOR films and even THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT will not be sorry they invested the time in making THE DESCENT. Even non-distaff-oriented horror fans won't see this one coming...or expect to enjoy it as much as I believe they will. But be forewarned: only a claustrophobic who has masochistic tendencies will be able to tough out some of the scenes in this movie. I'm not afflicted with this particular phobia, and there were moments when even I could feel my throat closing up....
THE DESCENT is the story of Sarah (Shauna Macdonald) a free-spirited, adventurous gal whose world is completely shattered while on an outing with friends, when she survives a freak car collision that leaves her the sole survivor, taking the lives of her husband and child. (As many car accidents as I've seen in movies, this one still ranks as one of the most brutally horrific.)
A year later, Sarah's best gal pal, Juno (Natalie Mendoza) reunites Sarah and all the girls for one mother of an adventure, to renew their bonds and to help Sarah heal from the tragedy. The objective: a spelunking expedition through an uncharted series of passages, in a well-traveled section of the Appalachians. Well, that's what the group believes, anyway. What they don't know is that the egotistic and headstrong Juno has a few "surprises" in store for the ladies.
And what none of them know is that the caves are holding their own nasty and terrifying surprises in store...
Marshall is in top form here, and he proves that he can make a great film chock-a-block with female heroines as well as anything James Cameron or Ridley Scott has ever made. Though the cast is virtually made up of unknowns, they are engaging and compelling, each with her own personality and coping mechanisms to deal with situations that only get more and more harrowing by the minute. And though it is pretty much a horror film, it also has elements of a relationship drama, with a startling twist that will elicit as many gasps from the audience as some of the more brutal scenes that take place when the girls go deep into the caves and find...
But I'm not going to tell you about THAT. You want spoilers? Go read the other reviews. The less you know about this movie going in, the better.
Although there's not a serial killer in sight, I have to thank Mr. Marshall for THE DESCENT. As bitterly disappointed as I was with the potential promise of a movie like HIGH TENSION, he shows those filmmakers - and us - how it's really supposed to be done.