I really expected to like this film: a British horror movie from Neil Marshall (Dog Soldiers)
that has been described as "Deliverance
underground". Unfortunately, despite some superb moments, it failed on too many counts.
The plot is pretty simple. A group of six women, one still recovering from the loss of her
child, get together for an adventure holiday. As part of this they go caving. Things go
wrong and they find themselves lost in a maze of twisty little passages, all alike. Not
only must they try to escape but they must try to avoid becoming dinner for the inhabitants
of the caves.
So we have a group of friends lost and trying to stay alive in the claustrophobic setting
of an Infernoesque descent through the caves. It got great potential but doesn't quite work. Yes, there are shocks and I
found myself jumping on more than one occasion. But somehow the thing doesn't quite come
together. We've got a survival movie, a supernatural/psychological horror and an old-fashioned creature
feature. The Descent does them all reasonably well but none of them superbly.
One problem is that the characters - like those in the Blair Witch Project - are the
architects of their own downfall. OK, it's mainly the fault of one character, but even so
there must be better ways of setting up the premise. No experienced spelunker would act like
that. And if I was going on such an expedition I'd make damn sure I had my own map no
matter what anyone else said!
There's not a lot of room for character building during the intense action. The only ones
who really get a look in are Sarah (Shauna Macdonald) and Juno (played superbly by Natalie
Mendoza). Even between those two there are hints that a lot more is going on behind the scenes -
a few throw away lines suggest far greater depth of characterisation than
we are actually allowed to see.
Part of the problem is having six main characters. This is
necessary to keep the body count up but having so many characters and hence relationships
makes it more difficult for most of them to get much screen time.
As an exercise in claustrophobia the film has a technical problem: it needs to balance
atmosphere building with remaining watchable. The most effective shots are those seen
through the black and white of an infra-red camera - but an entire film of this would be
unbearable.
Hints of the supernatural - or a possible descent into madness - are laid during the
first half. Sarah is still in mourning for her child about whom she still has flashbacks,
and the camera lingers on her leaving behind her pills before the expedition starts.
Thoughts of Orpheus are unavoidable. Yet -
unless I've missed something - none of this ends up being used.
I'm not sure whether this film is too long or too short. Either it needs a lot of the
first act pruned or it needs more character building and interaction in the second half.
I suspect the latter - this feels like a film where dialogue-heavy scenes have been cut to keep
the action flowing. Which is a shame; the constant action actually detracts from the
suspense and fear.
This could have been a genuinely scary horror movie with the characters and
their relationships unfolding
as they face the monsters. Unfortunately it abandons subtlety and suspense for action. Despite it's
shock moments, The Descent doesn't really Deliver.
