7.7 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
On an annual extreme outdoor adventure, six women meet in a remote part of the Appalachians to explore a cave hidden deep in the woods. Far below the surface of the earth, disaster strikes when a rock fall blocks their exit and there's no way out. The women push on, praying for another exit, but there is something else lurking under the earth. The friends are now prey, forced to unleash their most primal instincts in an all-out war against an unspeakable horror - one that attacks without warning, again and again and again.
Starring: Shauna Macdonald, Natalie Mendoza, Alex Reid (III), Saskia Mulder, Nora-Jane NooneHorror | 100% |
Thriller | 68% |
Adventure | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-2
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: LPCM 6.1 (48kHz, 16-bit)
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 EX (640 kbps)
English, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 5.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
We've always said that if there is no risk, then what's the point?
The Descent is one of the scarier movies I have ever seen. Everything about it works in
perfect harmony: the tempo, the music, the direction, the acting, the editing, the lighting, the
scares, the gore, and so on. Nothing is overblown, nothing is understated. This Blu-ray edition of
the film contains both the R-rated and unrated cuts of the film. For the purpose of this review, I
chose to view the unrated version.
The descent into madness
Lionsgate's 1080p, 2.35:1 presentation of The Descent is outstanding. I noticed only one or two minor blemishes throughout the runtime of the film. Flesh tones in some of the early scenes are a little on the orange side, and a few flickers in the image are present here and there along with some noise in one darker scene late in the movie, but none of this is distracting or bad enough to obsess over. This is still a transfer that will knock your socks off, and it is even more impressive considering the setting and low level lighting used throughout the film. The Descent features a color palette that has a deliberate blue and gray tint about it early on in the film prior to the entry into the cave. This fits the overall tone of the film very well. Outdoor scenes look drab, foreshadowing the darkness and terror once the descent into the cave takes place. Detail is extremely high throughout. Once we get into the cave, the picture is constantly very, very dark, lit only by the lights on helmets and flares. This is where the strength of this transfer really shines. There is very little to no noise in the vast majority of the dark shots. Blacks aren't crushed, nor are they overly bright in an attempt to reveal more detail than we are intended to see. This image accurately represents the feeling of dread and claustrophobia to perfection. This is a top notch video transfer, and everything about it is spectacular. It is reference material from start to finish, and Lionsgate should be commended for handling what had the potential to be a disastrous transfer so remarkably well.
The Descent features a chilling soundtrack that strikes just the right chord from the get-go to set the tone of the film. Presented with both a PCM uncompressed 6.1 track and a Dolby Digital 5.1 EX track, this is a robust, tense, well crafted audio experience. Like the video, the audio is reference grade from beginning to end. A scene where birds are shown feasting on the corpse of a dead animal and suddenly scatter in every direction is a great surround moment in the track. A scene during a cave-in and other bass heavy sequences shake the foundation of your house. Surrounds are present and accounted for and are active throughout the film. Scenes where the creatures circle and scamper around the girls are particularly excellent. The directionality and flow of the sound from one speaker to the next, circling your room, is an awesome sonic experience. It sounds so real that it'll have you nearly as terrified as the girls in the movie. Dialogue is perfect; you will never miss a word and nothing is obscured by the score, ambience, or bass. Highs, especially the screams of the victims and the shrieks of the creatures, are distortion free.
Lionsgate has released The Descent as a full-blown special edition. There is enough here
to spend a good half a day digging through all of it. Below is a rundown of what is included.
Descent: An Underground Experience is a picture-in-picture supplement that shows how
the film was made, alternate angles of shots, how special effects were made, discussions with and
between cast and crew, and all sorts of fun behind-the-scenes information. Two of the last three
titles I have reviewed have featured a variation of PiP (though neither are true profile 1.1 PiP). I
believe that once profile 1.1 players and titles start hitting store shelves en masse that it will be a
hit feature on Blu-ray.
There are two feature commentary tracks on this disc. The first features director Neil Marshall
and actresses
Nora Jane Noone (Holly), Sasika Mulder (Rebecca), MyAnna Buring (Sam), Shauna Macdonald
(Sarah), and Alex Reid (Beth). Natalie Mendoza (Juno) is absent. Lots of laughing and giggling are
heard from the get-go amongst the girls and this is a more entertaining, laid back track than the
more dry and technical crew commentary. Speaking of which, director Neil Marshall, editor John
Harrison, assistant editor Tina Richardson, producer Christian Colson, and production designer
Simon Bowles appear on track two. This is indeed the more serious track and it provides an
in-depth discussion about the efforts each individual contributed to the making of the film.
Descending is an interview with writer/director Neil Marshall. (1080i, 7:13). He
discusses his thoughts regarding the alternate endings of the film and the movie's original title
(The Dark).
The Descent: Beneath the Scenes (1080i, 41:19) is a full length documentary. The cast
discusses the story, the meaning behind the film and their reaction to the script and the film.
Also discussed is the subject of horror films, the cast's favorite horror movies, and what scares
them in real life. Neil Marshall discusses the influences of Deliverance, Alien,
and The Shining on this movie. Overall, there is a lot of good information here and this
documentary is well worth a watch if you liked this movie.
Nine deleted and extend scenes (1080p, 9:56) are available. These look and sound great and
could have been seamlessly integrated into the film had the director chosen to do so. It's great
to have these in 1080p and actually looking like part of the film rather than the rough cuts we
often see on other discs.
Caving: An HD Experience (1080i, 8:38) is a first person POV trek through a cave. There
is
no narration, but it is set to music. Avid spelunkers might find this interesting, but I found
it
rather dull. A real-life spelunking expert commenting on what we are seeing could have made it
much
more intriguing.
Storyboard to Scene (1080i, 10:26) features scenes of the film superimposed over the
storyboards drawn for those scenes.
Outtakes (1080i, 5:13), a still gallery, cast and crew biographies, and a 1080p montage of now-
available Blu-ray discs from Lionsgate round out the disc. Please note that I had difficulty
maneuvering through the cast and crew biographies feature. My Playstation 3 would not allow
me to make any selections and I was forced to quit playback altogether to get out of the
feature.
The Descent is a scary, bloody, and original horror movie. Director Neil Marshall's first two films are brilliant, and this Blu-ray disc is the perfect medium to acquaint yourself with his work. Lionsgate has once again released an absolutely tremendous disc, and the studio is quickly becoming a leader in the high definition arena, committed to the Blu-ray format, and taking advantage of all it has to offer. This is one of the best overall discs available to date, showcasing top notch video and audio quality, fantastic supplements, and a great movie. This disc is highly recommended.
2009
2018
1982
2013
Unrated Edition
2008
Unrated Theatrical and Rated Versions
2013
1986
[•REC]⁴: Apocalypse / [•REC]⁴: Apocalipsis
2014
2014
2018
1984
Collector's Edition
2003
2018
1997
2011
2007
1982
2018
Unrated Director's Cut
2006
1987