The 2005 British horror film, The Descent, directed by Neil Marshall, has become a classic in the genre due to its intense claustrophobic atmosphere, harrowing storyline, and gut-wrenching scares. The movie follows a group of six women who embark on a caving expedition in the Appalachian Mountains but become trapped and hunted by an unknown group of creatures. However, the film's original ending in the UK version of the film was considered too unsettling and pessimistic by some.
In the film, Sarah (Shauna Macdonald) survives a traumatic car accident in which both her husband and her daughter die. To pull Sarah out of her grief, her adventurous group of friends set up a spelunking endeavor. As things begin going awry, Juno (Natalie Mendoza) reveals she had actually led the group into an unknown, unmapped cave system in an arrogant attempt to prove their skills. The adventure soon turns into a violent nightmare as the friends are picked off by mysterious, carnivore creatures. After accidentally injuring Beth (Alex Reid), Juno leaves her for dead and rendezvous with Sarah. With only the two of them left alive, Sarah realizes that Juno was having an affair with her husband and, sick and tired of Juno's lethal selfishness, injures her and abandons her. Shortly after that, almost miraculously, Sarah runs into an exit and gloriously climbs towards the blinding sunlight.
In the UK version, after effectively killing Juno, Sarah is shown to be still trapped in the cave at the ending, and that her successful escape attempt moments before was just a hallucination or a dream. However, an alternate ending was later created by order of the distributor, Lionsgate, due to poor reception of the bleak, hopeless ending by US test audiences. Also, the US ending opened up the possibility of a sequel with the same protagonist. Such a decision creates a lot of room for discussion about the merits of both the film's endings. Does the original UK ending triumph over the US one?
Does Sarah Escape The Cave?
The ending of The Descent is one of the most debated topics among fans of the movie. The ending shows Sarah emerging from the cave, covered in blood, and getting into her car. This image symbolizes her painful, triumphant ascension from the darkness that her life had plunged to. She then drives off, looking traumatized, and is startled by a vision of the ghost of Juno sitting in the seat next to her. In the US version of the film, the credits roll right after that. So, in this ending, even though Sarah actually escaped the cave, she is still haunted by her experience. The film ends on a bittersweet note, as Sarah is alive and free, but irreversibly shaken.
However, in the UK ending, after Sarah has the vision of Juno in the car, the screen cuts to black momentarily. Then, Sarah is revealed to still be underground, in a confined section of the cave system with no escape routes. She has another hallucination. This time, she sees her daughter Jessica in front of her and a birthday cake between them. A sweet memory often visited by Sarah in the movie that symbolizes how much she misses the happy moments she and her daughter shared. As the candle's flame on the birthday cake is revealed to be just a torchlight, the image of Sarah's daughter fades, and the camera zooms out to reveal that Sarah is so deep below, that the surface cannot even be seen. The screaming and howling of the creatures become deafening. Then, the credits roll.
No doubt that the UK ending is depressively bleak and leaves viewers with a sense of dread and despair. It suggests that Sarah never escaped the cave and was either killed or trapped in her mind, reliving the trauma of her experience. Also, the cave is, in this case, a symbol of Sarah's mental condition, forever afflicted by her daughter's tragic death. It lines up perfectly with the film's impending sense of doom, signaling that Sarah's descent ends at rock bottom, forever.
After The Descent's box office success, The Descent 2 was announced, and the US ending was chosen as the canon. With Sarah successfully escaping the cave and making her way back to civilization, she returns as the protagonist in the sequel.
What Are The Creatures In The Descent?
The creatures in The Descent are a major part of the movie's horror and are responsible for many of its terrifying moments. They are humanoid creatures with pale skin, sharp teeth, and claws, and are blind but have heightened senses of hearing and smell. They are fast and agile, able to climb walls and move silently, making them difficult to detect.
The origin of the creatures is never fully explained in the movie, leaving fans to speculate about their nature and where they came from. Some theories suggest that they are an ancient species that has lived in the caves for centuries, while others suggest that they are the result of a government experiment gone wrong.
The creatures' design and behavior were inspired by real-life animals such as bats, sharks, and crocodiles, as well as fictional monsters like the Xenomorph from the Alien franchise. The use of practical effects and makeup rather than CGI adds to the creatures' realism and enhances the movie's horror when the characters get up close and personal with the creatures.
The Descent is a horror movie that has stood the test of time due to its gripping storyline, intense atmosphere, and memorable creature design. Both endings make sense and have their own merits. The original ending is more artistic and open to interpretation, while the alternate ending provides some optimistic closure and sets up room for more dramatization. However, the original ending is the one that was intended by the director and is considered by many to be the true ending of the movie.