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Thursday, May 30, 2013

Dog Soldiers (2002)

“Dog Soldiers” is a violent and fun werewolf movie that is brave enough not to rely on CGI. The werewolf bodies look odd as they are actors in spandex-like suits but I think the heads and arms look great and these beasts are still vastly superior to the werewolves in “Cursed”. This film was the directing debut for Neil Marshall, who would later go on to write and direct “The Descent”. The film costars one of my favorite supporting actors, Sean Pertwee, in a role that’s absolutely perfect for him.

“Dog Soldiers” is about a unit of British Army soldiers running through a training mission against elite forces deep in the forests of the Scottish Highlands. Notable members include Sgt. Wells, Pvt. Cooper, and Spoon. When they cross “enemy lines” and raid the elite forces campsite they find the camp ransacked and empty except for one wounded survivor, Capt. Ryan. A few weeks before, Cooper had tried out for a spot on a Special Forces unit under Ryan’s command but failed to get in when Cooper refused to shoot a dog. Suffice to say, the tension between the two is high. The team moves out with Capt. Ryan in two as they realize that whatever took out the Special Forces was closing back in on the camp. They manage to get to a road just as a local woman named Megan was driving by. She picks them up and takes them to the nearest house. No one is home and so they barricade themselves in for the night. From what Megan and Capt. Ryan reveal, the soldiers learn that they are being stalked by a pack of werewolves, smart werewolves. Before they can leave to get help, the car that Megan was driving is torn apart, forcing the soldiers to buckle down and fend of the monsters until daylight. In classic horror movie style, they are picked off one by one until the big finale.

Favorite moment – Sgt. Wells was wounded as he went back to look for one of his men, having his stomach sliced open and some of his intestines falling out. Once at the house, Cooper and Megan try their best to Sgt. Wells back together. I love how he keeps grabbing a bottle of whiskey and chugs it until it’s promptly taken away from him so he grabs a gun until it’s taken away from him so he grabs the whiskey again. It’s a very playful scene and you can’t blame him for trying!


Second favorite moment – The fight scene between Spoon and a werewolf in the kitchen is EPIC!


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