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Are You Afraid of the Dark? A review of:
The Descentby
Carlos R Savournin
I can’t think of the last time I saw a horror movie and checked my backseat after finding my car in the theater’s parking lot. I did that after watching The Descent, one of the most disturbing horror flicks I’ve seen in a long time.
Fairly new writer / director Neil Marshall directs a cast of practically unknown actresses and delivers a film that grabs you within the first five minutes and it does not let go until the final frame.
Just off the cusp of a terrible tragedy, Sarah (Shauna Macdonald) decides to embark on an adventure with her thrill-seeking friends. Together, the seven women go on a caving expedition that goes terribly wrong.
The film is set almost entirely underground, and the darkness of the cave sets the mood for a heavily claustrophobic experience. At no point is the audience allowed to catch their breath as the seven women begin to lose their cool when a collapse encloses them in the cave for good. Without a map of the unexplored cave, they are left to find their own way out – and that’s when things turn ugly.
Most horror films rely heavily on stinger scares to get the audience’s attention. Not in this movie. The Descent is made up entirely of atmosphere and eerie images that are disturbing enough to make you look away from the screen. And when we’re introduced to a species of humanoid creatures that live deep within the cave and who want to have these seven women as their dinner, we don’t shy away and claim the movie ruined. In fact, the first hour of the movie is nothing but set up and tight crawl spaces. We meet the cast and are so wrapped up in their stories of love and betrayal that we can’t breathe when one of them is pinned by a rock. Enter the creatures and we’re downright scared.
There are moments when it appears as though Neil took elements of several of the best horror movies (Alien, The Blair Witch Project and Carrie to name a few) but he does it so successfully that you welcome the similarities. Thankful, however, that Neil did not borrow from last years bore fest The Cave which is a very similar story to this film.
The Descent is a very intense yet fun movie to watch. There’s plenty of gore so those who are weak in the stomach should have their blinders handy. And afterwards, ask yourself the question that is the movie’s tag: Are you afraid of the dark?
You will be.
With superior being a bright full moon, this movie rates:
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© Savournin, 2006
