It so great to finally be talking about a US release for this title.  The Descent is one kick ass film.  I have not yet been able to see it on a screen larger than my laptop as the version I got will only play on the DVD player on the laptop but even on that tiny little screen this film looms large.  It is a GREAT film. 

This morning’s emails brought the official press announcement on the August release of the film here in the states.  Here is what I got:

Lionsgate is proud to announce the theatrical release of THE DESCENT, in theaters August 2006.  Neil Marshall won Best Director and the film Best Technical Achievement (for the Editing) at the British Independent Films Awards (BIFA's), THE DESCENT was nominated for Best Film.

THE DESCENT SYNOPSIS

THE DESCENT is Neil Marshall’s hotly anticipated follow up to his 2002 hit DOG SOLDIERS. Directed by Marshall from his own script, it tells the story of an all-female caving expedition that goes horribly wrong, and stars Shauna Macdonald, Natalie Mendoza, Alex Reid, Saskia Mulder, Nora-Jane Noone and Myanna Buring. Set in a cave system deep in the Appalachian Mountains, Marshall describes his film as ‘DELIVERANCE goes underground’.

One year after a tragic accident, six girlfriends meet in a remote part of the Appalachians for their annual caving trip.  Deep below the surface of the earth, disaster strikes when a rock falls and blocks their route back to the surface.  The girls soon learn that Juno, the thrill-seeking leader of the expedition, has brought them to an unexplored cave and that as a result no knows where they are to come rescue them.  The group splinters and each push on, praying for another exit.  But there is something else lurking under the earth – a race of monstrous humanoid creatures that are adapted perfectly to life in the dark. As the friends realize they are now prey, they are forced to unleash their most primal instincts in an all-out war against an unspeakable horror – one that attacks without warning, again and again and again.

As the others battle for their lives, Sarah (Macdonald), still recovering from a mental collapse brought on by the recent deaths of her family, is fighting for her sanity. When old secrets are revealed, the friends turn on one another, causing the group to implode. Betrayed and desperate, Sarah realizes that to make it back to the surface, she must become as savage as the creatures themselves.

We got the trailer as well, click on the links below to scope them out:

http://lionsgate.arcostream.net/lionsgate/the_descent/trailer_1b_56k.wmv

http://lionsgate.arcostream.net/lionsgate/the_descent/trailer_1b_100k.wmv

http://lionsgate.arcostream.net/lionsgate/the_descent/trailer_1b_300k.wmv

http://lionsgate.arcostream.net/lionsgate/the_descent/trailer_1b_700k.wmv