The opening sequence with a group of men breaking into an old monastery is wonderful. Weird forms in the walls and floors promise that the place has been guarding some terrible secret. Unfortunately an avalanche/earthquake destroys the building and send the men into a deep dark cave where there are monsters. Some years later the ruins are being excavated and the cave is discovered. Its so big that there might be something there, especially since there appears to be a river of some sort that runs a hundred miles underground. A team of specialists is brought in and soon everyone is trapped underground and underwater, including the beasts.

For the early portion of this movie I was a bit confused by the critical drubbing that this movie took. Sure it wasn't the best movie ever, but it wasn't that bad. Unfortunately as time went on I began to get very lost, I got to the point where I wasn't sure what I was seeing. The problem is that the film is very dark and its often filmed in tight shots that re-enforce the claustrophobic nature of where the cast is suppose to be. Worse everyone in the cast blends together so once everyone got underground and in similar wet suits I had no idea who anyone was except there was a blonde girl, a brunette girl, an old guy, a black guy, a Japanese guy, and a bunch of white guys. The combination of the dark confused camera work with the clone like cast had me rapidly lose interest because I had no idea what was going on or who anyone was. I got to the point where I stopped caring. To be honest I got lost as to what was going on and stuck with it just to see the monsters.

Its a shame the film making isn't better or more coherent since the monsters are mostly quite good. These beasts are what makes the movie worth seeing. Sure there are some that look like rubber toys but some of the big guys look absolutely stunning. They are destined to become legends once the movie hits home video.(I can see the toys now) Should you see this? If you like great monsters yes, you'll want to see this. If like horror movies, you can give it a try, but understand its just an okay horror movie, not anything more. If you want a great movie find something else.

Oh dear. Back in 2005, two potholing horrors came out at the same time. Both involved teams descending into underground cave networks and discovering previously unknown creatures with a penchant for human flesh. THE DESCENT, a British film helmed by Neil Marshall, was a film I enjoyed very much and would probably watch again. THE CAVE, on the other hand, is a typical US horror that does everything wrong. Not only does it have a child-friendly rating, meaning it lacks the viciousness a movie like this cries out for, but it's happy to tread the same old ground without making any effort, delivering a film that's heavily inspired by creature classics like ALIENS and even PITCH BLACK and being instantly forgettable in the same breath.

Right from the start I knew this was going to be bad, thanks to the jerky, frenetic camera-work that takes place during the action sequences. Now, ALL of these take place in dimly-lit caverns which are hard enough to see in as it is, so why did the director feel the need to make things harder to watch with his jerky camera-work? Another cliché that doesn't work. Sadly, though, the bad camera-work doesn't stop us seeing the APPALLING creatures, which are CGI monstrosities for the most part, with the occasional use of a model head that looks just like an ALIEN. No thought or imagination seems to have gone into these beasts at all.

The script is dire, the cast boring. Even Cole Hauser, who has the most interesting role of a guy gradually transforming into a beast, comes off the worse as his sub-plot goes nowhere (I guess the filmmakers were trying to inject some menace). Eddie Cibrian has the right macho hero look about him, but he comes across as wooden, and the only cast-member I liked at all was Lena Headey (300),who actually has a little integrity (until the stupid twist ending, that is). Watch out for the gratuitous cleavage shot the director threw in in an attempt to draw the male audience. Morris Chestnut and Daniel Dae Kim are the ethnic types thrown into the mix for no good reason and totally underused.

I'm not even angry enough to care about this film. THE CAVE is one of those ones where your attention keeps wandering despite your best efforts and the end result is that I had no emotion about it whatsoever. Just a bland, cookie-cutter horror outing for the masses, and one that misses the point totally.

A group of scientist/explorers are brought in to explore a cave in Romania. Legend claims a church was built to seal the cave as a display of God's protective power, and Templar Knights fought winged demons.

The acting is pretty good with some solid actors. The most recognizable actors are Lena Headey, Morris Chestnut, Daniel Dae Kim, Cole Hauser, Piper Perabo, and Eddie Cibrian. They're able to give serious performances without being campy.

It's not scary as a horror, but it works more as an action adventure. They could have laid out the cave system better as the movie goes along. A few seconds of screen time could save a whole lot of headaches. Seeing Piper Perabo swinging on the cliff is a lot of fun. However some of the other action scenes are too confused and chaotic.

The creatures are a bit of a disappointment. It's just yet another CG creature creation. Half lizard half dragon, it could have been so much better considering what the creatures are derived from. They could have made it much more original and unique.