Nice Balance of Original Ideas and Reliable Conventions

Rating: 8/10 (27 August 2012)

A tight-knit trio of outdoorsy ladies invite some friends along for a weekend of alcohol and spelunking, but ultimately bite off more than they can chew in an uncharted system of North Carolina caverns. Darkness is an essential ingredient of any good horror flick, and after a chamber collapses shortly into the expedition, there's no shortage of that. The tight quarters add an appreciable element of claustrophobia to the mix, too, which really heightens the tension when a creepy tribe of pale, man-eating creatures appear and begin picking off stragglers. It's a good recipe, with plenty of quality spooks, but the low visibility and lack of characterization for most of the supporting cast meant I was playing guess-the-victim during most of the hairier scenes. Still, points for proficiency and for testing a few new tricks on a tried-and-true formula.