Dog Soldiers

Cast: Sean Pertwee, Kevin McKidd, and Emma Cleasby

Director: Neil Marshall

105 minutes (15) 2002

Rating: 9/10

review by Emma French  

The opening scene of Dog Soldiers presents a clichéd scenario of an amorous couple in a remote spot, far from help or other people, being brutally attacked by an unseen and non-human predator. The reasoning behind this unimaginative start becomes a little clearer when the soldier-protagonists arrive on the scene. The contrast emphasises that whilst a couple of horny campers might have no chance against a bloodthirsty group of monsters, the British army’s hardest might have a better shot. With no particularly obvious hero, you can never be quite sure which of the soldiers is going to make it to the end of the picture un-mauled. Given the savagery of the first couple of attacks, the odds of any of them surviving seem poor. 

Writer and director Neil Marshall has a strange film pedigree: he was the make-up artist for TV’s Smack The Pony, and the driver on John Carpenter’s Ghosts Of Mars, as well as writing and editing the 1998 feature Killing Time, before he made this film. Marshall’s directorial inexperience does not show and he converts a limited budget into a distinct advantage. Fleeting images of giant wolf-men put the CGI clone armies of George Lucas to shame. Believing that there are real actors inside the wolf costumes adds a visceral dimension that, back then, was difficult to recreate with computer graphics. On a gigantic budget this was the lesson Ridley Scott took to heart in Gladiator, comprehending that CGI should provide enhancement rather than the whole picture. Old-fashioned gore and suspense is still hard to beat. 

Sean Pertwee is surprisingly good as Sergeant Harry Wells, and rather suits the role of a partially-disembowelled action-man. Chris Robson is the most memorable and endearing of the other soldiers as jocular Geordie Private Joe Kirkley. Emma Cleasby provides some bland but welcome female interest as Megan in an otherwise testosterone-stuffed film. As with the John Landis classic An American Werewolf In London, there is a degree of poignancy too. Half man as well as half animal, for the werewolves their condition is a handicap and an affliction that they must philosophise, theorise, and live with, as best they can.

It is good to see a British film competing so effectively against the slew of franchised Hollywood’s ironic horror output. It’s evident from the very start that this is a straightforward, worthy contribution to subgenre movies (that includes Predator), although there is plenty of humour here too. Perfect for Halloween viewing, Dog Soldiers fares as well on the small screen as it did at the box-office.

Rating: 8/10

review by Michael Lohr 

This is a very entertaining, realistic horror movie about werewolves, the best one since John Landis’ An American Werewolf In London, and Dog Soldiers marked a much-needed return to the traditional horror movie genre. Written and directed by Neil Marshall, and co-produced by Christopher Figg (Trainspotting, Hellraiser), it’s a classic tale of survival, in much the same regard as Night Of The Living Dead, and Alien. Bob Keen’s Image Effects did a fantastic job at making the werewolves of look realistic and terrifying. The odd thing about this film is that it contains quite a bit of humour, but well-written humour that fits in superbly with the stark realism of the terror.

The movie is set deep in the forests of Scotland, and stars Sean Pertwee (Event Horizon), Kevin McKidd (Hideous Kinky), and Liam Cunningham (RKO 281), as a group of soldiers are out on a training exercise when they stumble up the bloody, gut-strewn remnants of a ‘special ops’ camp. What ensues is two hours of panic-stricken frenzy deep in the dark of night. The werewolves themselves were dirty, dishevelled, and downright nasty. The cinematography is dark, moody, haunting, and splendid. 

I heard some American critics say that this movie was ‘too British’ for their tastes. Well, I’m American and I say, sod off you daft buggers! If this movie were US made, we no doubt would have had Britney Spears prancing about with enough boy-band cameos to make me gag on my popcorn. Simply, this is the best horror film that I have seen in a long time. 

Disc extras: 

• This restoration for 4K UHD (with Dolby Vision HDR) release is approved by director Marshall, and cinematographer Sam McCurdy
• Archive commentary by Marshall
• Archive commentary with producers David E. Allen and Brian O’Toole
• New commentary by Alison Peirse
• Werewolves, Crawlers, Cannibals, And More - new 40-minute interview with Neil Marshall
• A History Of Lycanthropy - Gavin Baddeley on werewolf cinema
• Werewolves, Folklore, And Cinema - video essay by Mikel J. Koven
• Werewolves vs. Soldiers - making of Dog Soldiers with Neil Marshall, producers Christopher Figg and Keith Bell, actors Sean Pertwee, Kevin McKidd, Darren Morfitt, Leslie Simpson, and Emma Cleasby, special-effects artist Bob Keen, and more.
• A Cottage In The Woods - interview with production designer Simon Bowles
• Combat - short film by Neil Marshall
• Deleted scenes and gag reel with optional commentary by Marshall, plus trailers, photo gallery.