2. The Descent (2005) - Dir Neil Marshall
This film really is the bleakest of horror films, a genre that I've not really covered here. Though the first thing I'll say is that this refers to the UK edit and not the ending that was trimmed for the films US release. The story is that a group of women annually do a big group activity together, be it white water rafting or a holiday away. This year in order to help one of their member who has just undergone a difficult trauma, they decide to take her cave diving. The problems soon begin as not long into the journey, it comes to pass that the caves they are in are uncharted and they have become hopelessly lost. The film plays on this really well exploring that sense of total isolation and claustrophobia, that being trapped miles underground naturally brings. They seem to be making progress as a group and actually work together to overcome this terrifying situation. They are bonding and it seems like they might make it out of the situation alive, until they come across a feeding ground, They are attacked by a group of creatures. A species that has developed due to spending years underground in the cave, think the look of Gollum crossed with the veracity of the Aliens. Sarah, our protagonist, decides that she'd rather fight for her survival, than become a victim to these ruthless killers and is determined not to die in the caves. She wounds her best friend, Juno, who it transpires accidentally killed a member of the group and leaves her for the crawlers. After finally finding a way out of the caves, she gets in her jeep and drives off, only to pull over to vomit. There she is startled to discover a bloody Juno. This is where the US cut ends. In the original version, the film cuts back to Sarah in the caves as she hasn't actually escaped at all just fantasized about her freedom and in a final zoom out we see that not only is she surrounded by crawlers, but there is no exit anywhere near her. The film really dampens your spirit as all the way through the film, you remain convinced that she'll discover a way out only to have that taken from you at the last minute. Ignore the sequel, because that doesn't exist.