In 2003, six women disappeared in the Appalachian Mountains while on a caving expedition. In 2005 their footage was found. That’s the tagline you didn’t see on this film, but easily could have. Nor is there any “based on real events” caption at the beginning, possibly a choice by director Neil Marshall to avoid accusations of exploiting his subject matter. But there is another, darker theory: that Marshall was pressured by the American government to present the film as entirely fictional, and to keep silent about what he knew.
Twenty years ago, Neil Marshall’s film, THE DESCENT was released, building on the success and praise of his previous movie, DOG SOLDIERS. “This is the fresh, exciting summer movie I’ve been wanting for months. Or for years, it seems,”said Jim Emerson, reviewing on behalf of Roger Ebert for the Chicago-Sun Tribune. Now, author, Kate Probert pulls on her safety gear and descends into the darkness, to explore what made the film such a thrilling, perfect horror movie.
Dark bleatings, my wonderful tribe! Got a tasty little novella to talk about today, and I think you’ll love it as much as I do if you’re a fan of the movie, The Descent. Have I ever read a story that encapsulates great non-fiction but is also fiction before? I don’t believe so…until now!
The concept of this book is simple: the movie The Descent was based on real events. This is never stated anywhere in the film or credits, but author Kate Probert found this out one day after starting a project on the film, only to receive a mysterious package from someone claiming they were there.
The execution of this book is fantastic: first, in true documentarian fashion, Kate talks us, scene by scene, through the entire film. This is the part that works excellently as a non-fiction breakdown of the story. Not only does she retell us the story in the movie, but she also adds some of her own insights into the characters and scenes, plus background details, trivia, and all that stuff that us film dorks love. Interspliced, we find sections of a diary written by the person who sent Kate the mystery package, which apparently take place inside the very cave that the film is about, during that horrifying expedition.
And then…there’s what comes after Kate is done retelling the film for us, which I won’t spoil for you, but yikes! I’ll be staying in my house, with my snacks, where it’s safe, thank you very much.
I love the concept for this book, and even more I love that The Descent was used as its base, because I absolutely LOVE that film. Overall, I would recommend watching the movie before reading this, because I think you’ll get much more understanding, tension, and enjoyment from the book (though saying that, there’s no way of me actually knowing how I might have taken it had I not already been a fan of the film, because that’s not my reading experience – maybe it’s a great read regardless!).
If you’d like to check it out, I’ve popped the link below for you:
Bleeeeat!
Happy Goat Horror 
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