If I had to choose, among the various monstrous animals that man has managed to invent from time immemorial (or we like to think so), I would surely choose werewolves as my favorite. However, when we look at the quality of films made on that topic, very few of them are good, and even fewer are excellent. One of these, rare great ones, is Dog Soldiers.
A detachment of the British Army, as an exercise, was given the task of measuring its strength with the Special Detachment. The special forces will hold the position, and the soldiers will try to surprise them and take that position. The scene is a remote part of Scotland, a mountain with dense forest. Soldiers led by Sergeant Harry G. Wells (Sean Pertwee) and his deputy Cooper (Kevin McKidd), find a hole in the deployment of enemy forces, ie. uncovered part of the terrain, and decided to go that route. That night, they come across the mutilated body of a cow, and as it is strange to them, and by the way, they decide to investigate it a bit. That investigation will take them through the forest, where hunting is underway, where they are neither a hunter nor a prey, but a big meaty bait.
As I said before, this is Nile’s first film, in which he signed both the director and the screenwriter, and I can say that he guessed in both cases. For his very interesting, tense and scary (which few horror films have managed in the last 20 years), he chose the perfect ambience. The Scottish Highlands with its dense forest are ideal for this fast and tense horror action.
If there is one thing I can say about Nile, it is that he is a master of atmosphere. All of his films have a special, creepy atmosphere that keeps you on edge. He uses different, real fears, which more or less every person has. He perfectly combines them in his supernatural stories and in that way, draws you completely into the story and manages to really scare you, which is the dream of every horror film director, only that many do not bore him. where all fears surface in all their power. In that way, he pushes them to the extreme, and you experience that agony together with them.
By using night vision shooting methods (military binoculars) as well as a special display of werewolf vision, he greatly contributes to the aforementioned atmosphere of the film and makes this story really scary and creepy. Especially surprising are the effects and costume design, ie. the werewolf look, which is great, just as I think one should look, given the small budget this film had. For that, every part, because the creatures look cruelly evil and creepy. The cast is great, especially Sean Pertwee, Kevin McKidd and Liam Cunningham.
On the whole, the film is a great horror action, where both genres provide everything that is expected of them. So the story is creepy, scary, and on the other hand loaded with strong action scenes. In addition, it has a note of great British humor and there are some very comical situations that are also maximally nasty, which is another plus for this film.
A recommendation for everyone who likes to watch a quality horror movie, especially for werewolf lovers, but also for those who want a tense and entertaining movie.
