Parents' Guide to Dog Soldiers

Along with The Descent, released three years later, this action-packed werewolf flick established writer-director Neil Marshall as a leading British horror filmmaker. A strong cast and plenty of zippy dialogue help speed along Dog Soldiers' claustrophobic stand-off between a circling pack of beastly predators and a group of British soldiers who'd rather be watching soccer. Keeping the special effects at a distance helps Marshall build both intrigue and tension. The occasional eruption of bloody violence and the odd fiery explosion ensure that we know death can arrive for our embattled battalion in a number of ways, even if the reasons behind it all are harder to see. The confines of the space they're in does have its limits, though. Unable to introduce new characters, the story relies on a couple of them keeping secrets that aren't too difficult to guess. It rarely spoils the fun, but does mean that the plot loses a bit of momentum while we wait for a couple of twists that set up a final, bloody battle. Now a firm cult favorite, Dog Soldiers is likely to continue to find fans among anyone who likes their horror movies to bear their teeth and howl at the moon.