Neil Marshall made a name for himself, justifiably, with 2005’s The Descent, but prior to crafting that film’s claustrophobic horror, he’d given us Dog Soldiers. Here we find good writing, acting, and Marshall’s characteristically excellent execution of practical effects.

I love how Dog Soldiers doesn’t pick on soft targets. Many horror films inflict their monsters on hapless and unprepared victims. A Nightmare on Elm Street hacks away at teens. The Shining subjects an innocent family to its machinations. The Birds overwhelms a Dick and Jane duo with sheer numbers. Horror typically posits a lopsided confrontation, where the stakes heavily favor the evil force(s) present. Dog Soldiers upends this and places in harm’s way a troop of hardened, trained and fully armed British infantry. It doesn’t rush into doing this, either, taking its time to establish the men’s credibility and likability. It’s only then that things take a sharp turn for the worse. Favorable comparisons with Predator abound. Read the rest of this entry →