A group of four mine surveyors are hired to explore a long abandoned silver mine to see if whether or not it is worth reopening. Two of the men, along with a girlfriend and her best friend, rent a secluded cabin not too far from the mine, but soon find out the hard way that they’ve released strange, tentacled creatures which once again stalk people in the tunnels, as well as their cabin’s basement.
Like other cult films such as “The Boogeyman” I had a real hard time writing this review, because for some reason I had a lot of trouble putting my finger on exactly why I liked this movie, despite the fact it gives plenty of reasons not to. There are plot holes galore, with one blatant example being why would the miners have dug tunnels from the mine to the town’s houses? The script is the standard B-movie issue, “let’s all line up for a slaughter in the climax” type of formula, although there is a good laugh here and there, and sort of a good rapport between Balding and McCarren. The cast does a fairly good job with the material they’re given, with Balding stealing the show with her perky, big-eyed charismatic charm, and “Creepshow” icon Jon (“I want my cake!”) Lormer standing out whenever given the screen.
Director Conway does give this movie a creepy edge, showing ominous point-of-view shots from the creatures quietly stalking their victims, and he wisely leaves what they look like up to the imagination of the audience up until the climax. Unfortunately in the end the monster special effects aren’t up to the task, and when you do finally get a good look at them you just have to laugh. They’re very imaginative but look too phony and turtle-like to be taken seriously, one wonders how this film might have gotten more overall notice if they worked a little harder on them? Given the same cast, director, better monster FX and a more thoughtful script this could have been a monster movie classic.
7 out of 10, you need to be a forgiving sort to enjoy this film despite of its many flaws, but for some it will still manage to strike the right chords.
