The Descent: Part 2

Somehow, they've managed to crap all over the mystery and wonder of the first film. I wouldn't have thought that possible, but here's two hours worth of what basically amounts to the same movie with different angles. There's a fine line between horror and annoyance, and the difference is evident between the original film and this sequel. The first had some great character development, witty dialogue, an intriguing plot. All of those things have been substituted for B-movie versions of same. Huge plot holes, impossible scenarios, expositional dialogue, and an ending that makes both films seem pointless. Don't even get me started on why there is light in some of the caves deep underground.

Goodness. What a horrible, horrible follow-up to one of the best horror experiences of the past decade.

Where the first film was suspenseful and claustrophobic, this film displays constantly open cave dwellings and is repetitious to the point were no suspense can be truly built. I swear this takes place in an entirely different cave system, despite the film claiming it's supposedly the same exact one. Not even the revisited stomping grounds look the same.

The original film also used light sparingly in an attempt to actually make the audience feel as if they were trapped in a cave with the cast of the film. This sequel constantly shows bright surroundings, with light coming from unseen sources--particularly overhead, making it feel as if these characters aren't inside a cave system in the first place. Apparently the cave dwellers like to place small lava lamps and glow sticks around their territory because they... rave? I'm not sure where all this light was coming from! Strangely our characters can't seem to see what's going on even with all of this illumination and they keep bumping into each other in the "dark." Maybe there were budget problems but that doesn't excuse the lousy script and characters. Shauna Macdonald tries her hardest to keep the film afloat (she's pretty solid with what she has been given to work with), but I imagine this would be like what Sigourney Weaver would be doing had she been trapped in an AVP film. She seems like the only honest character in the film, suffering from the events of the prior nightmare, but the supporting casts around her are nothing more than bumbling idiots.

You don't feel anything for any other member of the cast. Despite David Julyan's score swelling in some of the fateful scenes, I felt almost no emotion behind any of the events this time. None of the deaths or tragedies make an impact like the deaths of those in the original movie. In fact, one scene at the end tries to tie up a major story thread from the previous movie, but it simply comes off as tacky and against the grain of the characters we have come to know.

The final nail in the tragically shoddy coffin is the ending, which is also funny whether intentional or not.

Related Recommendations: The Descent, The Thing, Eden Log, Pandorum, REC, Cube, Pitch Black

Following the events of the first movie, Sarah (Shauna Macdonald) is taken to a hospital. She has memory loss. A rescue team searches the caves for the missing women. A dog tracks one of the woman to an abandoned unexplored mine. Sheriff Vaines (Gavan O'Herlihy) takes deputy Elen Rios, Sarah, three cavers, and old timer Ed Oswald down into the depths.

The horror of the cave dwellers is diminished this time around. They are no longer the surprise of the first movie. The first issue is Sarah's position in the eyes of the law. At the hospital, she should be a suspect in murdering her companions. It would have been a more compelling position to put Sarah into. Once in the tunnels, the movie gets back into the claustrophobia which is so vital to the previous movie. There is one terrific section where a woman is trapped in a cave-in. One returning character is beyond belief. Overall, the shock is gone and this sequel fails to reach new depths.

I'm sure this will be the general feel from the majority of reviews but I've got to say that the Descent part 2 is just what you should expect; Similar character development but less of; Similar direction/cinematography but less of; Similar jumpy frights but less of; Similar gore but less of; Similar crawlers but less of; Similar fun but less of. However, for a £3.5m budget, 1st time director and not much room to manoeuvre with the script it's definitely an enjoyable Friday night flick worth investing in. Hey guys it's a sequel and with few exceptions (which I'm sure are discussed ad nauseum on IMDb notice boards) sequels at best are watered down versions of the originals. Not as good as "The Descent" but certainly better than Mr. Marshall's "Doomsday".

In the first The Descent movie, where Sarah was the only survival of a caving expedition, Neil Marshall (director and writer) chose to keep the ending open to different interpretations of the real cause of what happened. For me it is that open end that gave an added value to the first episode. Unfortunately someone, probably commercialism and money, decided to create a sequel. In any sequel the storyline is simplified to a brainless horror movie with a fairly guessable storyline.

There is also nothing to say about good acting or the development of characters.

If you have seen The Descent this sequel is certainly not worth it. But if you want to see a brainless horror with some jump-scenes it is acceptable.