DISSECTING THE DIRECTOR: Neil Marshall

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

“NEIL MARSHALL”

One of the biggest impacts on the horror genre over the last ten years has without a doubt been the arrival of director Neil Marshall. His first film was a welcome surprise and a nice addition to the genre and the werewolf legend. His next film The Descent however would be the film that has made the lasting impression. It has become one of those films held in high regard, and the one to which most others are compared too. The man himself has since branched out and made some other very different films, yet still keeping in the spirit he started off with. He grew up during the Video Nasties craze, which has had a profound affect on him as a filmmaker. Those films from the 70’s and 80’s have certainly stayed with him and can be felt in what he makes even today.

BEST WORK

Get The Descent on DVD here
Get The Descent on Blu-ray here

It would only seem logical to name his stand out film as his best work, and it actually really is. There is a reason this film stood out from the rest, and made its way into peoples ‘Best of’ or ‘Top’ lists. The Descent is a great film as just about everything about it works extremely well. Neil Marshall understands how to successfully set up characters, a situation, tension and peril in an interesting and engaging way. If those elements don’t work well together, the film will suffer. With The Descent they all blend together in a perfect way, the characters are interesting and developed enough to engage. The situation they get into is a terrifying one, it plays to a lot of people’s fears, and so it works incredibly well with an audience. The tension builds and builds with those two elements at play until it eventually reaches a boiling point.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past six years, you should know what this film is all about. If you’re not aware of the plot, I’ll give you a quick run down. A group of female friends get together to go cave diving, it has been an especially rough year for one of them Sarah (don’t want to give away any spoilers). The tension is clear between the friends but they try to put it aside and enjoy the adventure that awaits. As they enter the cave, they find themselves trapped with no clear way of getting out. To make matters even worse, it seems something dwells within the dark inescapable cave. What could be more terrifying than being trapped in a cave, in small spaces with unknown creatures ready to attack at any turn? In the hands of Neil Marshall it really feels like nothing is, and if one thing doesn’t terrify you, the other will without any doubt.

I have had a strange relationship with this film; upon my initial viewing I wasn’t the biggest fan. It had been hyped up so much that when I sat down to watch it, I had built up this huge expectation and nothing was going to live up to it. Upon revisiting the film, I could experience and enjoy it on a whole new level. I was really given the opportunity to experience these characters (they feel like real women, some annoying but still real) and how awful it would be to get stuck in that cave. I don’t suffer claustrophobia, but I think that Marshall really portrayed what it must be like for anyone who truly does. The only thing I had an issue with was the cave dwellers as to me they looked like the product of Gollum and Dobby having an offspring. It didn’t really need them, but I can accept their inclusion and they do make for some cool scenes. Over all this really does hold up as one of the best horror films of the 00’s.

WORST WORK

Get Doomsday on DVD here
Get Doomsday on Blu-ray here

Doomsday was Marshall’s follow up film to The Descent, and he obviously went in a completely different direction with this. Instead of using the formula that had worked previously, he decided he wanted to make a more modern version of films such as Escape From New York or Mad Max. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, but the problem with this film is that it doesn’t know what it wants to be. It starts off as one film, then turns into something else that turns into something else and then once more turns into something else and you get the idea. It does not work for what he wanted to do which is really a major issue throughout. The film though is actually quite good for what it supposedly should be, a fun ride.

The stronger elements are the cast as Marshall assembled a really cool mixed bag including Rhona Mitra, Bob Hoskins, Alexander Siggid, David O’Hara, Sean Pertwee and Malcolm McDowell. The sets and costumes are pretty impressive, each one being as unique as the next. The action is solid and exciting with the car chase sequences in particular being a must see. The weaker parts include a pacing that does not really work; it doesn’t help that the film keeps changing what it is. It kept losing my concentration, I think adding in too many things to keep track of didn’t really gel in this kind of flick. In the end Doomsday proved to be an interesting experiment, not a perfect film but a good time.

TRADEMARKS

The biggest trademark Neil Marshall uses frequently is blood, it is no surprise that he found himself on the list of Splat Packers. With Video Nasties having been something he grew up watching, films like I Spit On Your Grave having left a lasting impression on him it isn’t difficult to understand where his influence comes from. But instead of using it for the sake of using it, he actually is clever about it. If there is a violent act in a scene, he gives it meaning and makes it necessary to the story. It is relevant to what happens, and I have to applaud him for actually doing that. His films are set in Scotland for the most part, sometimes it is subtle and other times not so much.

Another trademark that seems to pop up is his use of groups. With Dog Soldiers you had the group of soldiers, The Descent was the group of friends, with Doomsday it was the different factions and core group sent in for extraction and with Centurion you have the Roman soldiers and the Picts. Strong female characters are another element he likes to include, each one is different but they certainly can hold their own. He writes his own films, which in a way gives him the freedoms to include what he feels works. I definitely feel a bit of an 80’s vibe and look to his films, which I think is a bit of a homage to his roots.

HIDDEN GEM

Get Dog Soldiers on DVD here
Get Dog Soldiers on Blu-ray here

Despite the film having a strong reputation, I find that Dog Soldiers gets largely unnoticed these days and it gets forgotten about quite often. I personally am guilty of this, having seen the film upon its cable premiere; I liked it a lot and then forgot all about it. I recently rediscovered the film, and much like The Descent I think it is one of the better genre films of recent years. I think above anything, the film is about the soldiers and their ability to work together and deal with the issue at hand. That issue is werewolves and they are pretty big and nasty ones at that.

The film’s structure really laid the groundwork for The Descent; with a group of soldiers going out for a routine exercise only they didn’t count that the area would be infested werewolves. They are isolated, with nowhere to go, if they try to go anywhere the werewolves are waiting for the kill. To me that is a damn good time and this film really is exactly that all the way through. The characters are entertaining and realistic, the werewolves are actually kept hidden until later on and this really works to build up the suspense. Their design is really cool, and menacing, it proves that you can make them with practical FX. Whether this is a film you haven’t gotten around to seeing, or it has been awhile, this really should be on top of your viewing pile.

NEXT PROJECT

It seems that Neil Marshall is or has been attached to every genre project out there. Firstly it was to Burst 3D, and then it was to Underground, and earlier this year he was attached to several writing projects. His name has been tossed around for so much so I hope that in due time we finally get the low down on what he is currently working on, as I can’t wait to see what he’ll do next.

OVERALL

Get Centurion on DVD here
Get Centurion on Blu-ray here

Without a doubt Neil Marshall is one of the most exciting directors out there, he’s built up a solid resume and knows the genre well. He has interesting ideas and for the most part knows how to execute them. I am not sure where he comes up with some of them but glad he did and continues to do so. He certainly is a person who set the standards high for horror and rightly so. If you haven’t discovered the man yet, you really need to and you’ll be glad you did.