Review Written by Chris Wright, MoreHorror.com
“Dog Soldiers” (2002)
Directed By: Neil Marshall
Written By: Neil Marshall
Starring: Sean Pertwee (Sgt. Harry Wells), Kevin McKidd (Pvt. Cooper), Emma Cleasby (Megan), Liam Cunningham (Capt. Ryan), Thomas Lockyer (Cpl. Bruce Campbell), Darren Morfitt (‘Spoon’ Witherspoon), Chris Robson(Pvt. Joe Kirkley), Leslie Simpson (Pvt. Terry Milburn), Tina Landini (Camper), Craig Conway (Camper), Vilrikke’s Acer (Sam the Dog), Bryn Walters (Werewolf), Ben Wright (Werewolf), Brian Claxton Payne (Werewolf)
Werewolf movies can truly be hits and misses. They are like slasher movies because you feel like you are watching the same plot in every movie that is made about them. This movie is unique as it breaks apart from the traditional format for werewolves in the conventional sense. Thankfully, it is very difficult to get bored during this British horror film!
The plot begins with a group of British military men on a training mission in the Scotland wilderness but are soon plagued by werewolves who roam the region as the soldiers’ new mission is to get out alive. What I love about this movie is the setting because the Scottish wilderness was a great setting for werewolf atmosphere!
The characters are all fairly likable and the ones that aren’t likeable do their job of making you not like them. This movie isn’t filled with known actors which, to me, make this a good movie preventing people from pre-judging it before they even watch it. The only actor I know is Sean Pertwee and I know him because his dad was on Doctor Who! The banter among the military squad men is oftentimes hilarious…. What am I saying? The whole dialogue in the movie is brilliant! The movie is serious but at times doesn’t take itself too seriously.
What I particularly like about this movie something that I bash quite heavily in many 21st century movies and that is the influx of teen angst to liven up a movie. I am so thankful this movie doesn’t have a single solitary teenager in it! “Dog Soldiers” doesn’t have an ounce of unnecessary romance but focuses solely on action, suspense and some gore along with acting. This movie is how you do a good modern werewolf movie! I believe the recent remake flick “The Howling: Reborn” did the opposite of all this and, thankfully, hardly anybody likes it.
It is difficult to say what my favorite scenes are in this film because there is nothing I truly hate about it. I particularly liked the comic dialogue at the films opening with the soldiers hurling insults back and forth. I’m not particularly up to speed on my British insults so some of them I didn’t get, but I laughed anyway! Most will come away from this film remembering Spoon. I know I did. It’s hard to forget some of these characters.
The werewolves themselves weren’t too bad. I am sure there is CGI in this film but it isn’t so heavy to the point of being distracting. The werewolves themselves look fairly real like compared to what I originally thought they’d look. The gore is realistic and at times makes you want to cringe because it doesn’t look like CGI for a change!
Overall, this is a fitting werewolf film. This type sub genre can be a hit and a miss at times. Thankfully, this film isn’t even close to a miss. You’ll find yourself smiling and wincing in the same scene, which is what makes this film great. I give it 5 out of 5 stars. It has a 6.9/10 on IMDB.