Horrific Inquiry: THE DESCENT: PART 2 (2009)

Welcome back to the scariest, and at times goriest, column here at Film Inquiry: Horrific Inquiry. Twice a month, I will be tackling all things horror, bringing two films back into the spotlight to terrify and frighten once more. And occasionally looking at those that could have pushed the envelope further. Join us as we dive deep into the heart of horror, but warning, there will be spoilers.

“Everything you just said, you tell it to her face. We’re not dead yet.” – The Descent: Part 2

When Neil Marshall‘s The Descent ended, viewers were left with a slew of questions. And with the release of the alternate ending, the questions only grew further. Yet, sometimes ambiguity is the best kind of conclusion – especially when the answers fail to meet the questions. Sadly, this is the case with Jon Harris‘ The Descent: Part 2.

The Descent: Part 2 falls within the overflowing pot of sequels made for the sake of making a sequel. It does not speak as though it was made with the same heart and insight as the original but rather feels as though it was a film made by demand – whether that demand be from fans or the studio. It is sufficiently entertaining, but hollow, regurgitating its own original premise while failing to truly lean into its potential.

Descending into Suspicion

In the final moments of The Descent, viewers are left in the wake of Sarah’s escape from the cave. As she drives away, there is the sense that her recovery may just be beginning, but relief in the understanding that she is free. That is until the final moments reveal a haunting image of Juno beside her in the car. The jump scare is beautifully ambiguous and instantly startling, the credits rolling immediately after. And while questions linger, the ending feels justified in the wake of the emotional terror that has just ensued. The Descent: Part 2 immediately leans into this ambiguity, appearing aware as well of the alternative ending.

Part 2 opens with a pickup truck driving through the isolated woods of the Appalachian. As its driver suddenly stops to avoid hitting a deer, our first jump scare is introduced, Sarah (Shauna Macdonald) slamming her blood-covered body against the driver’s window, subsequently collapsing. The film does not acknowledge Sarah’s means of escape, giving validity and continuity between the films. The fire could have gone out leaving her in the darkness of the cave, an escape never obtained by the film’s end. She could have found herself unable to drive the truck, the lingering image and guilt of Juno preventing her from successfully escaping the expanse of the forest. The ambiguity is what keeps the link between the original and the sequel alive, and it is one of the few times this continuity is felt beyond a visual representation.

The Descent: Part 2 moves from this opening, title cards and reporters informing the audience it has been two days and the search continues at the caverns listed on Juno’s flight plan. But no one knows they are searching in the wrong place. Word slowly reaches Sheriff Vaines (Gavan O’Herlihy) that Sarah has been found, his arrival at the hospital proving futile. Sarah has no memory of what happened in the caves, the trauma rendering her useless in their search and rescue. Relying on scent dogs, the search team comes to the realization that they have been looking in the wrong place and a new plan is put into motion to enter a rumored new cave system below the town’s mines.

The feeling of regurgitation is felt early on as our opening scene once again transitions to find Sarah awaking in a hospital bed. Yet, where the original film uses this moment to instill the depth of her grief and the darkness engulfing her, Part 2 uses it to lean into the probability that Sarah is the guilty party. We as an audience know what Sarah does not remember, but the film is also aware of our suspicions surrounding Sarah’s sanity. And while it embraces it, the horror tropes of suspicion play too obviously and unoriginally within the town’s Sheriff, especially as he finds that the blood Sarah was covered in was A+ – the same as Juno’s. Right away, audiences know that his death is imminent due to his progressively consuming suspicion – and will be one of the most brutal in the film.

Something More Sinister Lurks on the Peripheral

Keeping Sarah’s discovery and the new search location under wraps, the Sheriff decides to join the search party, bringing his deputy Rios (Krysten Cummings) and Sarah along. In the hopes that returning to the caves will jog Sarah’s memory, it feels there is an underlying hate and growing suspicion that truly motivates his decision. In the first film, The Descent works well to stack its multilayered avenues of horror. With silhouettes and sounds cutting the silence, The Descent was able to tackle both the emotional and physical trauma within the caves. Part 2 attempts to do the same, yet as cleverly executed as was the the first, the sequel leaves much to be desired.

As the group is lowered into the caves, the operator of the mine, Ed (Michael J. Reynolds) tells a story of his grandaddy being hired to explore the newly discovered cave system that lies hidden just below the mine. Sadly, he was never seen again. While this gives justification to the discovery of previous cavers’ exploration of the mines in the first film, it works here to lay the foundation for something more sinister. As the mine shaft is lowered, Ed winks at Rios. It is a small moment that is easily forgotten as the search group begins to look for the cave system. It isn’t until the final moments, when we think Rios has broken free that we find the true meaning of the wink.

In the final moments, as Rios runs through the forest, she stops to catch her breath beside a tree. It looks as though she is free, but it feels as though at any moment she will be ripped back into the darkness. As the camera moves around her, audiences will remember Juno speaking of the creatures hunting outside of the cave. Your heart starts to pound as you know the ending is moments away, and freedom is far from assured. As the camera moves around Rios, I was half expecting one of the creatures to descend from the top of the tree, killing her instantly and dragging her back to the cave. What I was not expecting was Ed the mine operator, a shovel slamming into Rios’ face. As he drags her body to the cave, The Descent:Part 2 reveals its most interesting aspect – knowledge of the creatures and a devotion to keeping their secret in tact. As the first left us with questions, so too does the last.

Differences in the Regurgitation

The sequel immediately distances itself from The Descent in its lack of claustrophobia. It is open, and movement easily obtained. While there are tunnels to push through, the danger is no longer the cave itself, only the creatures within it. And the creatures are always present. In sound and sight, this is no longer an instance of hiding in the shadows. As they enter the first cave room, Sarah’s memory begins to slowly trickle back, her responses more along the physical than the cognitive. You see her heart racing and her breath becoming shorter. As she focuses on the various calcium deposits, the camouflage aspect of the creatures becomes the focus, a turning head sending Sarah into a fright.

As they move into the next cave room, taking on an escape room framework to the underground construction, I found myself also missing the deeply contrasted lighting of the first film. Gone are the oranges and the greens, occasionally making an appearance, but never with the impact they did in The Descent. The first attack of the creatures looses the elegance of the choreography the original captured, wide shots once again giving too much room to move around in and the light taking away from the fear of the darkness. Furthering the regurgitation of The Descent, Part 2 brings the creature’s front and center following a cave collapse, unironically caused by the gunfire of the Sheriff chasing after Sarah. Her panic crawling through the caves as her memory returned sent her into survival mode, causing her to look like a suspect in the process.

Following the cave collapse, one by one each member falls victim to the monsters of the underbelly. The search team of Dan (Douglas Hodge), Greg (Josh Dallas) and Cath (Anna Skellern) are the first to fall victim, their inclusion strictly for body count and reintroduction of the caves original victims. As they back track through the same route the women took, they come across both Rebecca and Sam, brutally murdered and left hanging exactly where we left them. There is little development within the search group. This once again differs from The Descent. Sam, Holly, Rebecca and even Beth were present for the inevitable body count, yet there was a care to each of them. Neither were just there to die, but rather victims of one individual’s emotional drive. There was a doctor, a rowdy fellow climber and a friend. Each had lives outside of what they were doing and what the film encompassed, the night before the cave exploration crafting their connection and individuality all the same. Viewers also had time with each, to see the small intricacies that each inhabited. For Part 2, they were there to die. Because, as we soon discover, no one leaves the cave.

Vengeance and Redemption

The re-emergence of Juno (Natalie Mendoza) was one of the best, yet most hollow moments of Part 2. There is excitement in seeing her return, but she is not the Juno we left behind. She seems more feral yet in tune with the creatures. As she is found by Sheriff Vaines, she seems to come alive at the information that he has brought Sarah down with him. Vengeance, alongside suspicion, becomes the central focus as Juno begins to hunt down Sarah.

Each Juno and Sarah have both reached a peak of survival. Sarah claims she was able to leave the cave by following the water, leaning more into the alternative ending than the one we were originally left with at the end of The Descent. As Rios follows her, the film returns to the intimate filming that made the first so successful. In one particular moment, Rios finds herself alone and abandoned neck-deep in water, the scene becoming the film’s most visceral. Yet, as clear-headed as Sara seems to be, her time spent in the cave has not allowed her any advances as she struggles to find her way out. Both Juno and Sarah are on different paths, each with their own knowledge of each other and the cave. It is not until vengeance, suspicion and retribution meet that Sarah and Juno are able to put the past behind them, each able to have their moment of redemption. It gives viewers a moment of hope, that retribution can be achieved in the face of darkness.

The idea of sacrifice is tackled in the film as well, the act never fully meeting the hope it is supposed to deliver. And that is the horror of The Descent: Part 2 – there is no hope. Greg sacrifices himself so Cath can jump on the body of Sam to escape the creatures. But as soon as she lands on the other side, there is a creature waiting to attack her. The final moment of sacrifice comes in the wake of Juno’s death. In a final battle with the creatures, Juno saved Sarah from falling over the ledge with the Sheriff, but neither will ever leave the cave. As Juno succumbs to a fight with one of the creatures, a momentary reprieve gives Sarah the chance to make things right between them. Yet, in this moment, Sarah comes to the understanding that only one can survive, screaming and sacrificing herself so Rios can escape to return her daughter who is still alive.

It is a powerful moment, somewhat lost in the regurgitation of the final moments of the original film. But it is the failure of the sacrifice that rings louder. As Rios is rendered unconscious by Ed and dragged back to the entrance of the cave, Sarah’s sacrifice proves to have been in vain. In this moment it reshapes both the ending of The Descent and the opening of the sequel – no one ever truly leaves the cave. Engulfed not by the darkness and the earth’s underbelly, rather we are engulfed by the emotionally driven decisions of those around us and those who enable them.

Conclusion

The film ends on one final and highly predictable jump scare, taking away the brutality of the film’s revelation and potential third film setup. As the creature jumps out of the darkness at the audience and the credits roll, The Descent: Part 2 becomes just another hopeless sequel engulfed by the darkness.

Watch The Dsecent 2