The Bunker (2001)
4/10
Grim Viewing
18 May 2008
Warning: Spoilers
"The Bunker" features a cast of fine British character actors and Charley Boorman. That's not to say that Boorman isn't good in his role, just that this film is more his level. Guys like Jason Flemyng, Jack Davenport, Christopher Fairbank and even TV regulars Eddie Marsan and Andrew Tiernan could do this sort of film in their sleep, although they all pitch in to "The Bunker" with enthusiasm.

Well, I say "enthusiasm" but I mean war-weary cynicism. The film is set at the nadir of the Third Reich and all the actors in "The Bunker" portray German soldiers in varying degrees of despair or denial. This was what kept me watching the film, as the men stuck in the bunker were forced to face some unknown evil and ended up tearing themselves (and each other) apart.

It's a variation on the standard "Old Dark House" horror theme and it works quite well, but "The Bunker" brings very little that's new or exciting to the screen. There aren't many shocks - more a sense of creeping dread as events unfold, and what could be referred to as "The Twist" at the end has been regularly signposted all the way through the story with grainy flashback scenes.

You may enjoy it but this old couch potato won't bother with "The Bunker" again. It's a quality production let down by a 6-bob screenplay.
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