Deathwatch

"Welcome to hell," are the eerily prophetic words, complete with shells, atmospheric all-is-not-right music and the groans of dying men, a hint of what's to come. After the battle, out of the fog and into a German trench, the men of Y-company discover that's exactly where they've landed. First of all, the place is deserted. And strewn with (mutilated) corpses of German soldiers. All dead. Except one (Torben Liebrecht), who warns them desperately that there is "quelque chose de mal" in that place, and to get out as soon as they can. Naturally, they all ignore him, except for Shakespeare (Jamie Bell). Soon, it proves true when the men start turning against each other, or getting sucked into the earth with barbed wire, or tying each other up à-la-crucifixion.

Well. After two years of watching this in the making, it hasn't disappointed (thank you, Mr, Bassett). Great set-up, with the rain, the rats, trenches and mud to make Spielberg weep with envy. While the script could use some work ("what's the matter with this place? What's happening?" asks one -rhetorically?), the acting keeps the characters from becoming walking clichés, especially Jamie Bell as the unwelcome greenhorn, or Hugo Speer as the duty-bound Sgt. Tate, to name a few. The suspense was average and wasn't so scary that there'd be lost sleep over it, nor was it anything over-original. But it's a great piece of ensemble casting (i'd pay the admission again to see Hugh O'Conor say the f-word), cool FX and steady directing make it a good viewing.

Another in the recent wave of War-Horror movies like Dog Soldiers and The Bunker, this one actually has a couple of stand out moments. I don't want to spoil anything for anyone, but there are some interesting moments with barbed wire. The acting was good overall, with most of the actors showing some nice restraint. Typically, you give an actor a period military uniform, a gun, and some exclamation points in the dialogue and you have a recipe for disaster. Points go to the director for keeping a lid on the overly dramatic yelling and screaming. Still, the pacing can be a little tedious at times, and tends to get a little repetitious. Succeeds where The Bunker fell down in that it actually delivers some chills and delivers an ending that isn't too reminiscent of a Twilight Zone episode. 6 out of 10.

I was reading several of the reviews on this site as I was watching the movie. I agree with some and disagree with some. There have been several comments regarding the relatively low budget. What's wrong with that? I, for one, appreciate seeing a movie that is nothing but real actors filling the screen, rather than special effects and computer-generated action. I think relatively low budget aspect of not having special effects made it more "real". The acting I thought was fine. The only person I recognize, being an American, was Jamie Bell. He did his usual very good job here. I have absolutely no idea who the rest of the cast is, so I was not constrained in believability as several reviewers were who mentioned that when they see one specific actor, for example, they keep thinking of his role on a television show. With Bell being the only guy I've seen before, all the actors were, to me, able to settle into their roles as WWI soldiers.

I agree with a couple reviewers who commented that it was good that it was an all-British cast. As an American, it annoys the hell out of me when Hollywood makes movies that involve characters from other nations, and could very easily fill those roles with actors from those nations, but instead use American actors with horrible imitation accents, or worse yet, not even using an accent. Regarding what the movie was "really" about, I like the fact that it was left a little up in the air. This is one of those movies that allows heated debated after viewing it. It is good to have a movie that lets you think for yourself regarding what you just watched, rather than having it force-fed to you. I think this was a very good movie, one in which a low budget, all British cast, and completely unknown (for an American) actors other than Bell, all combine to equal an enjoyable viewing experience.

During the horror of world war II, a few survivors of an English regiment, trapped behind enemy lines take refuge in a deserted German trench. When no help arrives, they begin to suffer mysterious and gruesome fates at the hands of something more terrifying than the war itself.

I found this film to be very enjoyable, it has a wonderfully creepy and suspenseful atmosphere, and the setting for the movie is perfectly dark and mysterious to heighten the plot.

Deathwatch is solidly directed and well cast and is a very different take on the horror genre as a whole that is refreshing to see.

7/10

I cannot say I ever saw a horror movie set in a WWI trench and I am not sure one has existed until this one. Or is this actually a horror movie or something else? Anyway the movie is rather predictable and cliche ridden. All around competent acting and directing saves it from being a disaster.