Highly Overrated But Still Good

Don't listen to the negative reviews

A Disappointing Continuation

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

German soldiers(who sound awfully British)have to take refuge in a bunker when Allied American forces have surrounded them. Only an old timer, a bit off his rocker, and a young soldier are present inside the bunker to protect it until they join them. With hardly any supplies and little ammunition, they are easy sitting-ducks ready to be picked apart. Within the gut of the bunker is a creepy, dark, dank tunnel which might lead to a way out if the Americans haven't found out about it. But, something sinister lives within the tunnels where a large crop of human skeletons and bones are stored. The tunnel seems to be a sort-of burial ground for dead soldiers put there by the German Reich. But, as wise tales of the tunnel's creepy past begin to fester in the minds of those in the bunker, paranoia, mistrust and irrational behavior set in with disastrous results.Ambitious film doesn't have the budget to quite succeed. It tries it's hand at making the soldiers human, but it's hard to care about their fates knowing who they are. You almost feel like cheering for whoever is causing these soldiers to turn inside out. The dark tunnel is a highlight providing some chills, but I felt it has lots of potential in it's "ghostly" story-line it fails to capitalize on. That could be because not enough money was present to provide us with ghastly looking ghouls, but it seems director Rob Green is aiming for what you don't see than showing us ghosts with decaying corpses or skeleton soldiers going for revenge. There is an interesting reason behind a certain violent deed these particular Nazi soldiers did that plagues on them which might provide the motivation of acts against them in the bunker. There's also a running theme about desertion as one soldier goes mad wishing to eliminate all those German soldiers who came to the bunker after departing war when it was getting harsh.

When I opted to watch this movie, I honestly expected (hoped for) just a good war movie. I did not get what I hoped for I got more. I, like many of my fellow contributors am a history buff and I too noted a few errors with the uniforms. However, though not a true expert like some here, I know that as late as 1944, things weren't going well for the Germans and they did have to improvise from time to time. Desperation is just as much a mother of invention as necessity.With that said, I wish to comment on the substance of the movie itself as I feel it's the more important issue.A quick plot summary; It's 1944 on the Western Front and a group of German soldiers escape an ambush in the Ardennes Forest only to take refuge in a bunker on the Siegfried Line. They know the Americans are out there and very much out number them, but they cannot see them. They are ordered to hold out and assist the bunkers remaining defenders, a teenage boy and scruffy old World War One veteran who has been called back to service. The kid is impressionable and has not experienced war yet, the old man has and being a local native, also knows some of the areas grizzly past which he shares with his new comrades. As time passes and things get more desperate the unit begins to face terrors they did not expect.I just watched it last night for the first time. I was spellbound. This terrific little film is not a monster movie per se. It's a psychological thriller were the monsters are not 'out there' but inside each man. For some it's the loss of a comrade or relative. For some, it's guilt. For some it's the need to prove themselves and drugs take their toll on one man as well.This is not a movie for those who enjoy cheesy slasher flix. Sure, they can be entertaining, but this is a movie that makes you think. You see these men who, if they truly are in an elite unit have nothing to prove, unravel under the worst of circumstances. Towards the end, even those who "held on" mentally still come face to face with the demons in their minds as they struggle to survive.I would not only recommend this to anyone who really loves a good horror movie, but would seriously suggest it for viewing in a psychology course.

Believe me, this is a generous four.The acting was surprisingly sound for a movie of this caliber. It's probably what kept me from giving this movie an even lower rating. There's no real character development, but I didn't expect much in the first place.Don't let any of these other reviews fool you. This is NOT a good movie. Is it a horror flick? Nah. Is it a historical war film? No, not really. I'm still having a tough time deciding how to classify it. It certainly isn't scary enough to be considered a horror, and there's not nearly enough fighting to consider it a war movie. So what is it really? In a nutshell, it's a bunch a bunch of German soldiers (who oddly enough, sound very British), trapped in a bunker as the enemy advances upon them. With nowhere to go, it seems as if they will eventually succumb to the advancing allied forces. But alas, the tunnels! Only one problem, there's some kind of "thing" roaming them. Not that it matters, we see it but once the entire movie. In their paranoia, the Germans end up killing themselves, and the movie abruptly ends with two escaping through a hole in the ground. Nothing ever really happens. Ever. I'm sitting here now, still waiting for something to spark my interest. It just never happened.If you like sitting around for an hour and a half only to feel very disappointed at the end, go ahead and see it. Otherwise, it would be wise to stay away, no matter how tempting it may seem to see this "movie".

The first thing that got my attention when I saw this movie on the shelf was the cover. Being located in the horror section I thought that this movie might provide a different outlet in a genre that is dominated by sequels and knockoffs of what is common right now (I can only imagine the amount of saw knockoffs that will be flooding the market in the next few years).But I was rather disappointed with the movie and am surprised how it got a decent rating on IMDb (are these people watching the same movie that I am or do they simply have relatives that star in this film?) The action wasn't too bad and the characters and their acting was better than what you would expect from a direct to video movie. But to classify this movie as horror is probably the biggest mistake that the director made. Now I'm not saying that it should be placed in the historical section of your local video store, but I can't honestly say that there was a moment when I was truly scared.There are some points of suspense but the director I believe fails to capitalize on this moments and get a jump out of the audience. I knew renting this movie that I wasn't going to be seeing a cult-classic or anything that was Oscar worthy but I was let down at the ending. I guess on the plus side I was never bored enough to want to turn the movie off, but that isn't saying that much.In the end I would say not to rent this movie unless you are truly a WWII buff and want to see a story based on that time period. This movie wasn't even like the typical B horror movies where you are laughing throughout the movie and not in a state of panic or fear as the director had intended with his project. This movie got a 4 from me because it wasn't the worse thing I've seen but I am still being somewhat generous with my rating.