Horror fans never have to travel too far to get their next slice of cinematic terror, and that applies to titles covering each and every one of the countless subgenres to swamp the market on an annual basis. Tales of werewolves tearing their prey to shreds have become almost ubiquitous, but 20 years later, and the argument is being made that Dog Soldiers remains one of the best ever.
Neil Marshall introduced himself as horror’s newest wunderkind when his absurdly entertaining hybrid of violent hirsute slasher and black comedy landed in theaters when the filmmaker was only 32 years old, and he certainly made the most of a budget that could generously be described as minuscule.
Sure, the werewolves themselves aren’t entirely convincing at all times (as you’d expect when they’re played by dudes in suits on stilts), but Redditors have been locked in a debate as to whether or not Dog Soldiers deserves to be called an all-time great.
Based on the fact the comments comfortably run into the hundreds, there’s obviously a lot of opinions being bandied around, but most folks are in agreement that Dog Soldiers is an absolute delight. Scary and hilarious in equal measure, and ably performed by a stacked cast of talented character actors embracing the heightened thrills, there’s no shortage of ambition and inventiveness on display.
Marshall has been teasing a potential sequel for what feels like forever, but there’s a very strong case for leaving Dog Soldiers as a one-and-done effort, if only to save the OG from being diluted by an inferior successor.