In a Nutshell. Mini reviews of movies old and new. No fuss. No spoilers. And often no sleep.

Tuesday 25 October 2011

THE DESCENT [2005]

Going into this film I had very low expectations but felt it'd be a good way to pass a Sunday evening. Coming out of the film I was left completely astounded and disturbed by the merciless brutal tones of this frightening cinematic experience.
I'm not claustrophobic but Neil Marshall's The Descent made me feel like I was. He cleverly builds up the tension and dread with perfect pacing. The disorienting edits and camera angles are wonderfully executed so that by the time you almost grow comfortable with the unbalanced surroundings he introduces a whole new wave of terror into the mix.
The all female cast have some believable characters to work with but don't always perform as well as they could be. It's not entirely original but it's the mood, setting and ruthless attitude that cements it as one of my favorite horror films of all time and one of the scariest of the new millennium.

4 Werewolf heads out of 5

3 comments:

budarc said...

I loved it, too. Was it you who I was talking about Descent 2 with last year? More or less a carbon copy, without any payoff.

cuckoo said...

Yeah...I avoided it for as long as I could. I hate it when great films get lacklustre sequels.
I think I had such low expectations I didn't mind it as much as I thought I would.
...but I'll Nut 'er up sometime soon and be more specific...well...specific as my Nuts allow me to.

Impudent Urinal said...

I also went in with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised.
3½ women being bitches to other women is more frightening than the monsters out of 5