Welcome to one of the main features of 'Castle Dracula,' the movie reviews section.
The reviews placed here are from all around the world, from the USA to the UK Japan
and everything inbetween. The formats reviewed are video and DVD. I have included the
origin of the film reviewed so you can check your player for compatibility. You may
also notice that there are some DVD-R reviews. These are not 'bootlegs' or 'copies'
but official screeners that I have been sent containing an as yet unreleased film to 
review. All the reviews here have been reviewed either by myself or my current movie 
reviewers. If you're an avid watcher of horror movies then why not join 'Castle Dracula'
as an official 'staff member' reviewing them. To do so, just click on the 'Join My Staff'
link in the menu to the left for details of this and other vacancies.
New reviews are normally placed here once a week, check my front page for under 'Castle
Dracula Updates' to see what latest movie reviews have been placed.

- Dog Soldiers - US DVD - 

The premise of Dog Soldiers is pretty simple. A squad of British soldiers is on 
manoeuvres in the highlands of Scotland. Their mission is to find a weak point in
the enemy lines and penetrate it. On the first night the soldiers are thrust into
a situation that none of them could ever expect. A mauled and dying cow falls into
their secluded camp. 'Sergeant Wells' decides to find out what happened to the 
animal. This leads the squad to a camp used by special operations soldiers. 
The camp is destroyed. Bloody remains of the troops are scattered among the ruined
equipment. Only one man, 'Captain Ryan,' is left alive. 'Captain Ryan' has a severe
chest wound. The squads training mission quickly turns into crucial struggle for 
survival. An attack ensues. The squad is forced to flee. Some kind of animals, 
not enemy solders, are attacking. Night begins to fall and the creatures pursue 
the soldiers further into the woods. A young scientist, 'Megan,' and her vehicle
save the troops from a certain death. 'Megan' brings the soldiers to a farm house.
Strangely enough, the family that lives there is missing. It seems that they left
just prior to eating dinner. Nothing in the house is disturbed. So it does not 
appear that the family is in peril. Soon the soldiers find themselves under repeated
attacks by what appears to be 'werewolves.' The house provides a decent location
for the soldiers to defend themselves. But a few circumstances work against them.
The house is isolated. The nearest neighbor and phone are fifty miles away. They
have only limited amounts of ammunition and there is no method to resupply 
themselves. Can the squad survive until dawn?
I really like the authenticity of this movie. The soldiers seemed to be real 
soldiers, not just some actors in military uniforms. They looked like soldiers,
acted like soldiers, and even spoke like soldiers. They do things that only real
soldiers would do under the same conditions. Conserving ammo and fighting as a 
team comes into play. The accuracy of the soldiers is probably the most important
aspect of the film. How many times have I seen soldiers with hair that is too long
or not wearing the uniform correctly? That is not the case in Dog Soldiers. 
If writer/director Neil Marshall had not put this much emphasis on the soldiers,
the movie could have lost much of its credibility. Marshall even admits that this
is a movie about soldiers with werewolves in it. Now that is an interesting and 
fresh perception. 
Other factors of the movie are also vital to its fulfilled potential. 
The conflict between 'Captain Ryan' and the squad is vehement and needed. 
'Ryan' and one member of the squad, 'Cooper,' previously met. They do not like 
each other. At times we are made to wonder what is a greater threat to the squad,
the creatures attacking them, or 'Captain Ryan.'
The concept and use of the werewolves are also critical to the success of this
film. The director and producers did something interesting with them. The movie
never really focuses on the creatures. No matter what the werewolves do, we are
always forced to direct our attention back to the soldiers. We see enough of the
creatures to know they exist. But we never lose interest in the movie, or the
soldiers by being inundated with the creatures. I found this to be an important
strength of the movie. 
The audiences perception of the werewolves is also well-conceived. We find out 
quite a bit about them from 'Megan.' The werewolves hunt in a pack. They are 
dominated by a male. Even though these beasts are bloodthirsty, they are also 
intelligent. When the soldiers start to gain the upper hand through the use of
weapons, the werewolves fall back and regroup. Their assaults even seem planned.
Even though these creatures want to feast, they also want to survive. Nature is
cruel, yet its ability to endure is greater than even the fiercest carnivore.
The special effects are also quite good. Director Anderson used the effects 
probably as well as anyone even has in a horror movie. The audience is not
overwhelmed. 
At the start of the movie, the werewolves were only an Urban Legend. By the
end of the flick they had become an unpleasant reality. It takes time for 
everyone in the squad to believe. This also allows for the movie to keep its
intensity level. 
Gore hounds will like 'Dog Soldiers.' Quite a bit of blood and guts are 
scattered about from beginning to end. These scenes are employed with skill 
and technical accuracy. Even the most brutal and savage scenes blend incredibly
well into the story. They are not overblown. The movie would have been just 
as gratifying without these scenes. When the movie was over, I felt that the
story and the characters blew me away, not just the gore. To me that is a good
thing. 
The acting is superb. Kevin McKidd plays 'Cooper.' He is near-perfect as a 
peacetime soldier who is thrown into a harrowing situation and forced to 
take charge. Sean Pertwee is cast as 'Sergeant Wells.' He is a combat veteran
who is truly concerned for his men. Liam Cunningham is terrific as 'Captain 
Ryan.' If you do not hate his character, you need to seek professional care.
At first I was not thrilled with the job done by Emma Cleasby. She plays the 
young scientist, 'Megan.' As the movie progresses you will better understand
her performance. 
This movie is gory, scary, and suspenseful. 
It is also quite entertaining to watch. Some comical relief is provided. 
Usually I dont like to chuckle during a horror flick. The laughs came in all
the right spots in this one. 
A few twists are also written into the plot. You might or might not see all 
of them coming. I will not give any of them away.
This DVD also has its share of extras. The movie can be watched in full or 
wide screen. 
The audio can be in either 5.1 Dolby Digital or 2.0 Dolby Stereo. 
Two trailers are available. 
A pretty good featurette with some of the cast and crew is worth watching.
A commentary version with producers David E. Allen and Brian OToole is 
available. It is a decent commentary. I do wish that director Neil Marshall
had been included. I just always feel that directors have more insight into
the actual making of a movie then the producers.
I do not know if 'Dog Soldiers' is the best werewolf movie ever made. But 
it is easily one of the best. I strongly recommend this movie. Pick it up,
bring it home, turn off the lights, and get ready for a great horror movie. 

Reviewed By Scal Williams 

- Dog Soldiers - UK DVD Extra's - 

Normally, I would not interfere with one of my 'staff members' reviews. On this 
occasion however I feel there is need as even though Scal has done his usual 
outstanding job of reviewing 'Dog Soldiers,' he has reviewed the US DVD version.
The UK DVD version is different enought to warrant adding to his review but not 
a stand alone review. Therefore, with his kind permission, I will review the 
differences here.
Firstly, this is the far superior version out of the two, which makes a change 
for a UK disc.
The picture is available only in 1.85:1 widescreen, which is crystal clear.
The audio comes in a nice Dolby Digital 5.1.
Now the extra's are where the disc really comes into it's own.
Firstly, there's the Producer audio commentary with David E. Allen and Brian 
O'Toole. 
Secondly, there's the funniest audio commentary ever commited to a DVD. This 
features Director and Writer Neil Marshall, Director of Photography Sam McCuroy,
Co-Producer Keith Bell, Sean Pertwee (played Sgt Harry Wells) and Liam Cunningham
(played Capt. Ryan). This commentary is of the like you will have never heard 
before, they rip each other, their jobs and performances to shreds, it really is
a laugh a minute and had me in stitches. This is worth the price of the disc alone.
After that, we have deleted scenes and a gag reel, these can be played with or 
without audio commentary.
There are also some Storyboards, a 'making of' feature and a short film called 
'Combat.' This is extremely clever as it shows what is happening in an English 
pub but all the sound effects are via war films.
Finally, there are four trailers, one of which is your standard trailer for the 
film, the other three however are based around the English Army recruitment videos
that are played on TV. The one's where you are given a situation and asked what
your choice would be, answer correctly and they recommend you join, except this 
time, they are given the 'werewolf' twist at the end. Very imaginative and very
entertaining.
If you have a choice of the two versions, get the UK version, it is worth every penny. 

Reviewed By Dracula

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