SUBTERRANEAN HOMESICK BLUES

Yesterday I went to a press screening of The Descent, a hit British horror movie that makes its way to U.S. theaters on August 4. It doesn't merit the comparisons to Alien that some critics have made, but you can count on it for a few electric-chair-strength jolts:

The Descent
Grade: B-

Director Neil Marshall’s claustrophobic tale about a nightmare cave expedition is a cut above recent horror fare like Hostel and Wolf Creek, but its IQ drops sharply when it suddenly shifts from being an adventure yarn to a bloody monster mash. A group of women takes on unchartered underground territory in the Appalachian Mountains, only to discover that a slimy band of creatures intends to eat them. The special effects team loses some serious ingenuity points by ripping off goblin designs from the Lord of the Rings trilogy.