And, yes, the last. (Sorry, Doomsday. Not this time.)
"Neil Marshall doesn't do enough for me. I'd like to see him at the helm of more big movies. I've loved all three of his major films. They were all superb films. It's interesting that he's only done a few films and two of them have made this list."
Dog Soldiers is a very British movie. British movies can feel grainy and less polished than their Hollywood counterparts - but that doesn't mean they're not as good. Sometimes, like Dog Soldiers, they're better.
"I'm just sorry we can only do this movie once. I could watch it any day.
"This is one of those movies you just have to listen to the commentary for. It's tremendous. You also learn a lot - like the fact that they had to replace the dog halfway through the movie because the damned thing couldn't act. I highly recommend you give the commentary a try."
It doesn't take long to decide whether you're Team Cooper (Kevin McKidd) or Team Ryan (Liam Cunningham). Is anyone Team Ryan, though? If so, I don't think we can be friends. They do everything they can to set Ryan up as the film's ultimate baddie and killing the dog is the ultimate no-no. Captain Ryan's instance that Ryan kill the dog "for no reason" will make any animal lovers watching want to throw stuff at the screen.
(Don't worry... the TV is fine. I mostly hurled verbal abuse. 😉)
"I'm with Cooper, too. Not for no reason. I'm an animal lover so it wouldn't have even been a question. If it had been a cat, I might have considered it... Kidding! (Or am I?)"
After their initial confrontation, you don't see Ryan again for awhile. Instead, you get to meet Cooper's new platoon, led by Sean Pertwee's Sgt. Harry G. Wells. (And, yes, that is a reference to H.G. Wells.) Things slow down for a bit here because the movie takes time to build rapport amongst Wells's team - a smart and important move on Marshall's part. The werewolves that Wells's platoon soon face are a family so the only hope the soldiers have of beating them is to be a family themselves. By taking the time to develop the relationship between them now, you give them a chance to win later.
Well... it's sort of a victory. Final result: 1-0.
"Sean Pertwee is one of my favourite actors of all time. Everything he's in, he steals. He doesn't always play nice roles but he always plays them well.
"He makes the film, him and Cooper. They're the film's lynchpins. Without them, Dog Soldiers doesn't work. Although... you really have to add Darren Morfitt's 'Spoon' Witherspoon to that. He managed to steal just about every scene he was in."
I've been talking a lot about soldiers. If you know me, you know I am not a fan of military movies. Just not my thing. They rank just above Westerns, barely. I love Dog Soldiers, though, so you know they were doing something right. A lot of that has to do with that rapport between the soldiers. It feels more like a group of friends than a group of soldiers.
"That tattoo story does more than build rapport. It's there to tell you that there are things out there you can't explain. You know Wells is a believer. Or, at least, open to possibilities.
"The werewolves, when you eventually see them in full - because it doesn't rush to reveal them - are very good. Quite different from everything else out there. The effects in Dog Soldiers were very good. They didn't go with CGI, which sometimes works better. In this case, they turned out to be quite stunning."
At this point, Dog Soldiers doesn't feel much like a werewolf movie, either. Until the moment Ryan gets his ass slashed (to much cheering from yours truly), you're watching a normal, buddy horror movie. They're literally sitting around a campfire, telling scary stories. When the werewolves do come into it, though, things get crazy.
Let's not forget that, in true Marshall style, this is an action/horror movie.
So, you know... guns and explosions and shit.
"But not much gore. It has its moments but there isn't a lot of gore in Dog Soldiers. You can't say it's not gory because there are guts and stuff hanging out. It isn't gratuitous but it could be. That's just not Marshall's style."
The action never overshadows the horror. Don't forget where the action is set. We've spoken at length about the woods representing our most basic human fear, fear of the unknown, and there's plenty of that in Dog Soldiers. You're constantly watching the treeline, wondering where the werewolves are. And, of course, it's dark.
Dog Soldiers is a dark, dark movie. Even when it's meant to be daytime, it's still dark - another basic human fear. (The woods, dark... they're all connected to the same fear.) It's never so dark that you can't tell what's going on or struggle to see. Like The Descent, the light work is simply masterful. The thing Dog Soldiers really excels at, though, is dialogue.
"One of my favourite things about Dog Soldiers is the score. Can you hear that? The drums... It's a fast-paced drumbeat with an orchestra behind it. That drumbeat is always there when the action starts. It drives the action forward at breakneck speed."
Timing is another thing that makes the movie work so well. It's delivering a bad joke the moment before getting snatched. It's racing the trail of fire with a great big boom at the end. And, for comic relief, it's a big ass cow landing on your campfire in the middle of a bad joke.
Its humor is what made me love Dog Soldiers. The quips are natural and believable. Basically, it's like listening to your best friends tease each other - which is why it was so important to slow the beginning down, to get the comradery right.
"It's believable, the banter, the way they go at each other. Dog Soldiers is one of my favourite werewolf movies of all time, partly because it has that typically British feel to it."
Emma Cleasby's Megan is the movie's Trojan horse. It gives you just enough to wonder what Megan's deal is but bluffs just enough to keep you from suspecting too much, too soon. I like that she's a sensible, strong female character who isn't verbally, sexual, or physically abused by the soldiers (which happens too often in, well, reality but also movies.) Yes, I'm a feminist and, yes, I watch for these things.
The real villain is Ryan, from beginning to end. You start to wonder if that effer will ever freaking die - and what a death! There may have been a fist bump on my part when he finally bought it.
"My favourite death is when Cooper kills Ryan at the end. It was so deserved. Spoon has the best parting lines, though. As for my favourite moment? It has to be either when Wells is drunk and they're trying to stitch him back up ("Sausages!") or that stupid cow..."
Dog Soldiers is a fun, entertaining, action-filled movie with a brilliant cast. It's shot well and has great pacing. It's definitely one of my favourite werewolf movies. (It helps that, you know, Sean Pertwee. I could listen to him talk all day...)
"This one is right at the very top of my list. It beats The Howling, An American Werewolf in London, Ginger Snaps, Underworld... this is, by far, my favourite.
"I was sorry they never did the sequel. They've been talking about it for years but the longer they leave it, the less likely it is it will ever happen. Shame.
"It's a great action movie, with a good bit of humour and pathos. As a British person, and having known squadies, it's familiar. It's an accurate portrayal of exactly how British soldiers would react."
What are your favourite werewolf movies? Do get in touch and let me know!
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