The Descent

Just saw there's already a thread for the pair😛

Never mind then

steelmarlin75 said:I felt much the same way, honestly; there are certainly far better horror films out there with much stronger atmospheres and more gripping plots. I suppose I might just be setting my expectations too high for the genre, but this one didn't really manage to spook me.

But isn't the main goal of a horror movie more than JUST to scare you? There are plenty of other
elements that make a film truly great...
Of course, that's just how I see it.👍

Joshua Ramirez2 said:Since when does an all-you-can-eat buffet take out half the patrons in a restaurant? If the monsters were actually stronger than the girls, maybe I'd get it, but they were getting handled like toddlers here.

👍👍These women are real fighters.👍Interesting, tense, fun.👍

Joshua Ramirez2 said:Since when does an all-you-can-eat buffet take out half the patrons in a restaurant? If the monsters were actually stronger than the girls, maybe I'd get it, but they were getting handled like toddlers here.

They really did take them down, haha.🙂🙂
I'm finding this pretty entertaining... kind of tense, too.👍

Joshua Ramirez2 said:It’s a decent enough movie, but honestly, I didn't find it quite as groundbreaking as everyone else seems to claim. The opening really hooks you—it's great—but once the monsters actually show up, the whole thing just devolves into your typical, run-of-the-mill gore fest.

*Possible spoiler alert?*

I'm with you.
Watching them struggle through those cramped tunnels was actually more nauseating than anything else
since there’s zero ventilation, no windows, and absolutely no light.
That sense of claustrophobia hit me way harder and felt much more intense than the rest of the movie.
*Especially with those mutated fish-men, bats, or whatever they were supposed to be.
It's pretty predictable, too—way too many female characters and the writing for them is just weak.
I also agree with what you said about those "creatures" being a bit underwhelming when it comes to their actual hunting skills
and I'm really hoping it was all just some hallucination the women were having.*

The ending worked for me, though.
Yeah, for me it's easily one of the better parts, right up there with those first few minutes.

Grace Adams53 said:*Possible spoiler alert?*

I'm with you.
Watching them struggle through those cramped tunnels was actually more nauseating than anything else
since there’s zero ventilation, no windows, and absolutely no light.
That sense of claustrophobia hit me way harder and felt much more intense than the rest of the movie.
*Especially with those mutated fish-men, bats, or whatever they were supposed to be.
It's pretty predictable, too—way too many female characters and the writing for them is just weak.
I also agree with what you said about those "creatures" being a bit underwhelming when it comes to their actual hunting skills
and I'm really hoping it was all just some hallucination the women were having.*

The ending worked for me, though.
Yeah, for me it's easily one of the better parts, right up there with those first few minutes.

Windows in the cave? Honestly, I’ve been sitting here staring at this for ten minutes—just thinking about how much sense it makes if you actually look at the structural implications—and I can't help but wonder why anyone would even suggest such a thing. It sounds absurd, doesn't it? But then again, isn't everything in this line of work a little bit absurd once you peel back the first layer? I mean, come on. We aren't talking about some suburban ranch house in Phoenix here; we're talking about a cavernous, subterranean environment. You don't just "install" a window in a rock face without running into massive geological headaches. Is it even possible to maintain any kind of seal? Or are we just inviting the entire mountain to collapse on our heads because someone wanted a better view of the sunset? It's a ridiculous proposition, really—completely impractical and, frankly, a bit reckless if you ask me. Why go through all that trouble when you could just use high-end lighting? Just a thought. 🙏🙏

Grace Adams53 said:*Possible spoiler alert?*

I'm with you.
Watching them struggle through those cramped tunnels was actually more nauseating than anything else
since there’s zero ventilation, no windows, and absolutely no light.
That sense of claustrophobia hit me way harder and felt much more intense than the rest of the movie.
*Especially with those mutated fish-men, bats, or whatever they were supposed to be.
It's pretty predictable, too—way too many female characters and the writing for them is just weak.
I also agree with what you said about those "creatures" being a bit underwhelming when it comes to their actual hunting skills
and I'm really hoping it was all just some hallucination the women were having.*

The ending worked for me, though.
Yeah, for me it's easily one of the better parts, right up there with those first few minutes.

😕

Why are the characters so poorly written?

It’s simply because they are women. 😁

rowdybadger41 said:😕

Why are the characters so poorly written?

Well, because you barely get enough screen time to actually "get to know" them, let alone recognize who's who.
To me, they all felt identical, aside from the lead girl and the wild one;
everyone else just blurred together, and honestly, I couldn't even bother memorizing their names since there were so many.
Plus, they’re all way too cool when things start going south—like, nobody's actually panicking, nothing.
One little mishap happens to one of them and suddenly it's fine? Yeah, right. If it were real, they'd be losing their minds and screaming bloody murder..

Just my two cents, so don't come at me if you didn't feel the same way..🤷

Grace Adams53 said:Well, because you barely get enough screen time to actually "get to know" them, let alone recognize who's who.
To me, they all felt identical, aside from the lead girl and the wild one;
everyone else just blurred together, and honestly, I couldn't even bother memorizing their names since there were so many.
Plus, they’re all way too cool when things start going south—like, nobody's actually panicking, nothing.
One little mishap happens to one of them and suddenly it's fine? Yeah, right. If it were real, they'd be losing their minds and screaming bloody murder..

Just my two cents, so don't come at me if you didn't feel the same way..🤷

Nobody panics? Seriously, what movie were you watching? Look, you aren't the only one who missed the panic, the screaming, and the crying from most of the girls in the cave. Those girls who were actually trying to defend themselves—they had plenty of reasons to act that way.
As for getting to know the characters, personally, I thought the intro was solid. I had zero trouble figuring out everyone's deal just through that banter they had in the cabin.

Edward Hernandez332 said:Nobody panics? Seriously, what movie were you watching? Look, you aren't the only one who missed the panic, the screaming, and the crying from most of the girls in the cave. Those girls who were actually trying to defend themselves—they had plenty of reasons to act that way.
As for getting to know the characters, personally, I thought the intro was solid. I had zero trouble figuring out everyone's deal just through that banter they had in the cabin.

Look, you can have your take, and I'll stick to mine.
To me, the whole thing just felt unconvincing.
That attack on the girl who actually led them there was pretty weak and lacked any real tension.
At least, in my book.

Spoiler alert:
When their only known exit gets blocked, they're all just totally fine with it,
like, "oh well, let's go see if there's another way out"... man, I just wasn't feeling it.🤷

Grace Adams53 said:Look, you can have your take, and I'll stick to mine.
To me, the whole thing just felt unconvincing.
That attack on the girl who actually led them there was pretty weak and lacked any real tension.
At least, in my book.

Spoiler alert:
When their only known exit gets blocked, they're all just totally fine with it,
like, "oh well, let's go see if there's another way out"... man, I just wasn't feeling it.🤷

What exactly felt unconvincing to you? Look—this isn't some subjective debate about feelings or personal opinions—it’s about the cold, hard facts. And frankly, I'm curious... what part of that didn't sit right with you?

Grace Adams53 said:Look, you can have your take, and I'll stick to mine.
To me, the whole thing just felt unconvincing.
That attack on the girl who actually led them there was pretty weak and lacked any real tension.
At least, in my book.

Spoiler alert:
When their only known exit gets blocked, they're all just totally fine with it,
like, "oh well, let's go see if there's another way out"... man, I just wasn't feeling it.🤷

How do I think it went? Honestly, it was a mess. At first, everyone was just pointing fingers and accusing one another of lying—you know how that goes when things go south. Then, once they realized they weren't actually in the right room, the panic really started to set in. It was pure chaos. Luckily, there was a doctor in the group—someone who actually knows how to maintain some level of rational thought when everything is falling apart—who stepped in to steady the ship. She managed to calm them down and laid it out plainly: sitting around crying isn't going to get anyone anywhere. You either find another way out, or you don't. Simple as that.
Look, I respect everyone’s right to have an opinion—really, I do—but let’s be clear: the facts are being twisted here.

Man... alright, so I just finished watching it... for the very first time...

..and he actually survived. God, I really shouldn't have waited until the middle of the night to watch something like this, especially all by myself in the dark. Now I’ve had to get up to go to the bathroom and I can't stop looking over my shoulder every two seconds... honestly, all I was missing was a baseball bat in my hand just to feel a little safer 🤣

Anyway, it was a really great movie.

Carol Lewis said:Man... alright, so I just finished watching it... for the very first time...

..and he actually survived. God, I really shouldn't have waited until the middle of the night to watch something like this, especially all by myself in the dark. Now I’ve had to get up to go to the bathroom and I can't stop looking over my shoulder every two seconds... honestly, all I was missing was a baseball bat in my hand just to feel a little safer 🤣

Anyway, it was a really great movie.

Dive straight into the sequel while this one is still fresh in your mind, because it picks up right where this leaves off.🙂

Edward Hernandez332 said:Dive straight into the sequel while this one is still fresh in your mind, because it picks up right where this leaves off.🙂

Depends on which version you watched.
It doesn't connect to the British version, but it does to the American one.
It’s all about the ending. People who know, know.

So, I was just sitting here thinking about this one http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0435625/ 🤷...

Carol Lewis said:So, I was just sitting here thinking about this one http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0435625/ 🤷...

Let me know how it ends. Use a spoiler tag or white text.

B52 said:*SPOILER*

It ended with her stuck inside the hive, which doesn't leave much room for a sequel in my book. That whole escape was just a dream. I actually loved that ending, so I'm confused about how they'll do a follow-up. This was the uncut version.

So what? For a sequel to work, do I just have to ignore this ending or...? 😁

SPOILER!

Exactly. In America, the movie ends with the escape, so the sequel just has her heading back down with the crew. Honestly, the British ending is better, and it's a shame they forced a sequel, but I'll still check out the second one. You should watch The Ruins! It's a phenomenal movie and didn't get enough hype.

So, I finally picked up this film on Blu-ray—honestly, one of the best horror movies from the last decade—and just sat down to rewatch it. And yeah, I was scared shitless. Again. Watching it in Blu-ray makes such a massive difference; the picture quality is absolutely phenomenal. If you have any way to watch this in HD, do it. Seriously. You can actually see all those subtle color nuances Marshall uses—the red from the flares, the greens, the whole search for an exit, the play between light and shadow... I’m speechless. It’s captivating. With a decent home theater setup, this is a total sensory experience.

And what else is there to say about the movie itself? This is probably my seventh time seeing it. I’d go as far as saying it’s right on the edge of being a masterpiece. The way the themes and emotions weave through the story—so subtle yet so heavy—is incredible. The acting is top-tier across the board, especially from Juno and Sarah. Their dialogue and their struggle, both external and internal, felt so real to me. Everything is just phenomenal, from the small details to the character development. One more thing... people ask why I find the crawlers so terrifying. It's because they feel human. They reflect us. When they attack, it’s primal, animalistic. But fighting them isn't like some stylized fight against an alien or a slasher who just guts you and moves on. With the crawlers, you're actually wrestling for your life. You're fighting, they're lunging at you, hitting you, biting you... it feels visceral. There's nothing unrealistic about it. Death feels slow and agonizing because you know you actually had a fighting chance. That's why they get under my skin every single time.

My only real gripe... the absolute only thing that felt off to me was Bec's death. Every other character's death felt well-executed, like it had weight and purpose. But hers? She just gets ripped away suddenly, like some cheap trope you see in every generic horror flick from the last few years. That's it. Just that.

Just one bit of advice—stay far away from the sequel. If you actually enjoyed the first film, please don't watch it.