Product: The Descent (Original Unrated Cut) [Blu-ray] (2006)
Rating: 4.0
New Brit horror at its mean and lean best
Mention British horror movies to most people and they will probably fixate on the Gothic Hammer horror genre - and they would not be wholly wrong .That estimable studio produced many a classic movie but times have changed and gentres move on .This movie is thoroughly modern in setting and execution .It is mean ,lean and machine tooled and in keeping with contemporary sensibilities .An all female caving expedition goes dreadfully awry in this sleek and quite superbly constructed celluloid panic attack from director Neil Marshall (whose previous movie Dog Soldiers was similarly stunning).The 6 women find themselves in an unmapped subterranean system where thet are attacked by a tribe of cannibals ,at the same time as their friendships ,nurtured in "civilised"climes ,are beginning to unravel ..Cue attacks from ravening creatures ,desperation and the stripping away of the veneers of civilization .Ultimately -and here lies the genius of the picture-the danger to the women lies as much in the betrayal and implosion of their relationships as it does with the cannibals .This is a potent piece of cinema offering little in the way of cosiness or comfort .It is claustrophobic..It is scary .It is vicious .It is a movie that shows in every frame that its makers know how th keep you on the edge of your seat and away from your comfort zoneBleak and brilliant .Scary and unsettling .New Brit horror atb its bestSuper-scary and relentlessly viciousWant to watch it ? As the song goes " Are you man enough /Big and bad enough"Edgy and powerful .