Monday, May 16, 2011

The Descent

The Descent (2005)

A caving expedition goes horribly wrong, as the explorers become trapped and ultimately pursued by a strange breed of predators.



"Hey, there's something down here... "

"The Descent" is a movie I've been wanting to get my hands on for quite awhile now. It had received near-universal positive reviews over the past few years and I was curious to see if it would live up to the hype. The answer is YES, it does, and in spades. "The Descent" is one of the creepiest, darkest, nastiest little movies I've seen in quite some time.




The setup is pretty simple: a group of women who enjoy extreme sports/adventuring start out the movie on a white water rafting trip. On their way home from that trip, Sarah (our eventual heroine) loses her husband and young daughter in a head-on car crash. A year later, the still-grieving Sarah meets up with the group again for a new adventure, this time exploring a cave in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina.




The main strength of "The Descent" is how it builds slowly; in fact we don't even see the creatures (dubbed "crawlers," though I kept thinking of them as "C.H.U.D.'s") until the film is more than half over. The first hour is scary enough without them, as the girls squeeze through holes in the rock in near-total darkness, occasionally getting stuck, fighting amongst themselves as the stress of the situation begins to get to them.




"The Descent" is one of those movies that actually works better on a TV screen, as long as you're in a dark room; it heightens the film's claustrophobic vibe. Make sure you pick up the "uncut, unrated" DVD, which contains the original ending from the British release of the film, rather than the truncated/fake "happy" ending of the American version.




Monster movie fans can pick up "The Descent" with confidence. Those with claustrophobia or fear of the dark should probably pass on it.

8/10

Have you seen it? If so, what's your opinion?


38 comments:

  1. This movie looked pretty bad to me... then again most movies in this genre are bad.

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  2. I didn't like it that much. I would have to think back what it was in particular. It's been some time ago. I guess I thought the story was weak, and I couldn't find myself in what motivated characters to do certain things.

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  3. As a geology student, I feel compelled to watch this.

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  4. it looks awesome :)
    i love scary movies!
    +1 follower

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  5. I never seen the first one, but I saw the second one with a couple of friends a couple of months ago. It was not scary to me at all, it was alright and they said the first one was better overall!

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  6. in general i dont really like movies of this genre but i might give this one a watch

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  7. was meh the second was even worse "everyone dies the end"

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  8. Wow 8 out of 10, really bro? it actually looks like a bad flick there but i will give it a try then.

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  9. adding to my watchlist..seems like something i would enjoy

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  10. Then, I'm gonna search it online ;p

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  11. im slightly claustrophobic and would definitely piss my pants watching this

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  12. The 3rd picture reminds me at Angelina Jolie.

    I think i will watch it!

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  13. Great post! Keep up the good work.

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  14. yeah ive seen it, great film. litttle scary ;) i still need to see the second one though

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  15. haha i was watching that movie with my roommate 4-5 years ago. after we watched the movie everybody said WTF???? it was a brainfucker movie but we enjoyed it. 4/5 points :)

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  16. Looks like quite the thriller!

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  17. I really enjoyed this truly spooky movie.

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  18. last picture a lod of blood :D

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  19. scary but sounds interesting! nice review

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  20. I've seen it, and I agree with the review. Good movie, especially for horror fans.

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  21. Not seen it actually, I have it though.

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  22. I like scary films, but I'm not much of a monster movie fan..

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  23. i liked it, altough the storyline wasnt too original

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  24. Nice post, keep up the good work!

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  25. i did see it, it was quite nice

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  26. That last pic made me burst out laughing.

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  27. there just seems to be too much going on in this movie for me

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  28. I actually saw this one and loved it!

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  29. great review totally explains the movie

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  30. 8 out of 10 is a pretty strong reccomendation. I'll check the video store this weekend!

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  31. Often seen it on TV it's alright

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  32. Hmm monsters and nice girls... great plot ^^

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  33. The Descent seems awesome. Going to watch it tonight ^_^ Hope it's not too scary :P

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  34. I thought this movie was okay. I was expecting a better plot but some of the moments in the movie where very thrilling.

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