A group of female friends led by Juno (Natalie Mendoza) encounter bloodthirsty creatures when they get trapped in a mountain cave due to an avalanche. Worst of all, their friendships sour and they discover their real fear is from each other.

This has to be one of the best films of this year. This movie accomplishes what The Cave didn't. Full of terrifying suspense, ample blood flow, awesome looking creatures, action packed sequences, and all without the use of CGI.

The atmosphere was totally creepy the whole way through. At times, I actually think the hairs on the back of my neck were standing up. More than once I jumped and almost fell over. Every time somebody rounded a corner, I found myself holding my breath. This is as creepy as creepy gets.

The acting was superb. The actresses really draw you in to their world. They make you feel almost as if you are right there with them. Never have I seen such powerful performances in a low budget film.

The "crawlers" add perfectly to the creepiness. They are plain ferocious that can move with unbelievable speed. They also like to rip their prey apart as blood goes everywhere.

I highly, highly recommend this film to any and every horror fan. This is one movie not to be missed. This film puts you in a downward spiral full of fear. Good luck watching this alone in the dark.

Hands down, I give this a 10 out of 10

Europe is quickly becoming the new Japan nowadays, as far as horror movies are concerned. The Descent follows the path cleared by such movies as Haute Tension, Calvaire and Creep, giving a fresh look at some of the scary movie cliches. This time, it's the "small group of people trapped without hope of rescue - tension - alienation" gig.

I'll get straight to the point. This movie has everything that The Cave lacked. Great story, witty dialogue, suspense, top knotch cinematography. Basically, this is horror at its best. And it achieves the title without a single CGI shot.

All the characters are pure flesh & blood. Some are likable, some aren't but not one of them is flat or monster fodder. And as far as the monsters are concerned... The creepers have to be one of the coolest scary creatures ever. No CG, all "analogue", make-up and clever cinematography. They're not immortal (far from it actually) or supernatural. They're just purely ferocious. The way they look, the way they move... Simply awesome.

All in all, I just can't force myself to bitch about this movie. It's smart (if you think a movie about a couple of girls trapped beneath the earth with a brood of monsters can't have any psychological depth - you're dead wrong!). It's fast paced. It's simply great.

9 out of 10 hatchets to the neck.

A group of six thrill-seeking friends reunite to go spelunking. Unfortunately for them... they picked the wrong cave. Deep below the surface of the Earth they find that they must not only find a way out, but fend for their very lives.

The worst was supposed to be over for Sarah. After losing her husband and daughter in car accident one year prior, getting back together with old friends and making new memories had to be the best therapy. Being that adventure has always been these women's idea of a vacation; they set off on a caving expedition in the wilderness headed by Sarah's best friend Juno. So after a bit of good ol' fashioned character development, we too begin the descent.

And what a descent it was. You've all seen the commercial proclaiming this movie to be more gory than Hostel and the likes. It is. It will certainly appeal to the gorehounds that frequent this site so often. There is one particular part involving a fractured leg that made me squeamish.

You've also heard the commercial use the movie Alien as a comparison to the "thriller" aspects of this movie. The Descent does have a group of friends far away from civilization being picked off one by one creatures darting out of the darkness, so I suppose I can see why the promoters would say that. Do not get me wrong, however, that would be the only way I would compare this to Alien.

I really enjoyed this movie for many reasons. One of which was the way that it was filmed. It was very frantic and desperate, much like the plight of our characters. At some points the claustrophobia really kicks in and you as the audience truly feel it! The creatures were designed well and individuals in appearance. They're movement as very agile but devoid of fluidity. That I found to be quite… kooky. This was no B rate production in terms of special effects, and they deliver with the gore in oh so many ways.

It's not hard to believe that subterranean creatures would have horrible table manners. God, are they sloppy eaters!

With that said, I would also like to point out the few things that I could have done without / didn't enjoy. In my opinion this starts, slows down a lot (the aforementioned character development), and THEN really gets going. Also there are A LOT of shots where you just wish there would have been a bit more lighting – or perhaps a better camera angle. The UK version that I saw was overdubbed as will be the US release, sometimes that turns people off. Last but not least I’m going to bring up the ending here because it is definitely "love it or hate it" material. I don't want to reveal any details, but that seems to be the general consensus. The US release is supposed to have a different ending than the one that I just watched which I can only imagine was done to relieve the audience of the "duh?" sort of effect.

Other than the above details, I was thoroughly impressed with this movie. In my opinion this was a well needed breath of fresh air, and I hope it's not the last of it's quality in terms of horror at the box office the remainder of this year. My advice to my fellow Horrorwatchers would be to check this one out when it hits theatres August 4th. It's even going to have the new Saw 3 trailer on there for further incentive. I'll be there to experience it on the big screen, myself. Now if you'll all excuse me I have to go and buy some stock in LionsGate.

Good Stuff! 8 out of 10 brilliantly creepy nightvision shots.

I remember the first time I saw the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It was raw and visceral and left me feeling completely shell shocked: the feeling that there might, just possibly, be people that evil in this world. The Descent leaves me feeling the same way.

In a clever twist on John Carpenter's The Thing," a group of six women go cave jumping under the lead of tough-girl Juno (played by Natalie Mendoza with enough balls to make Michelle Rodriguez nervous). Instead of taking her team to a previously agreed upon "tourist trap," she quietly leads them to a supposedly uncharted cavern and, in doing so, may have just condemned them all to death.

Without giving away more than the trailer, it's safe to say that they are not alone. As the film progresses, the characters begin to prove that they are as dark as the caverns they're descending: They are ugly and brutal, and there are no heros here.

What everyone really wants to know though: Is The Descent as gory as the advertisements claim it to be? Hells, yes. It may not be the goriest film ever made (I still think that's "Buried Alive") but it definitely does not disappoint. You will see decapitations, eye gougings, Day of the Dead-style gut rippings, and other tasty treats. For a film with a decent budget and distributor, the camera is surprisingly unflinching, and Writer/Director Neil Marshall is not afraid to let it linger.

Marshall also cleverly has one of the characters bring along a video camera. This not only makes for some nifty Blair Witch-styled moments, but it enables him to use the camera's night vision mode to show us things that would otherwise be unviewable.

Nevertheless, The Descent is claustrophobic and dark, and it uses these characteristics to its advantage: keeping your eyes darting at the edges of the screen for a glimpse of something, anything amidst the black.

This film brings to mind (both visually and in its score) such films as Alien, Tomb Raider, and Jaws among others, but stands strong on its own. It has a bare-bones plot, and it has plenty of gore, but it has a disturbing subtext about humanity running beneath its surface, and I believe it will be considered a classic ten years from now.

The Descent is a damned fine film.

Pros: Strong cast. Solid effects. not afraid to show us the gore.
Cons: Because of the limited pallette of the film, it's sometimes difficult to see who is who.
Review Rating: 9 out of 10 creepy child-like laughs coming from the darkness.