I so enjoyed Dog Soldiers that I went looking for more movies by Neil Marshall. I wondered how he had gone from a low budget thriller to an effects-heavy disaster movie, but it turns out I was mixing up The Descent with The Core. The Descent is indeed another story of a small band facing overwhelming odds, though this time our protagonists are a group of women spelunkers descending into an Appalachian cave system. And though the latter half of the movie, with all the monsters and all (um, spoiler, there are monsters), is great and scary, I was riveted by the first half which is a great story of a caving expedition gone wrong. A couple of beginner mistakes are carefully telegraphed and then we watch the consequences play out for the band of women. I'd happily watch an entire movie of just that real-world thriller.
There was also one of the best uses of the rule of threes I've seen in a movie in quite some time. Well played, Neil Marshall, well played.
FuzzyCo grade: A
