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| Deathwatch | |
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| Directed by | Michael J. Bassett |
| Produced by | Mike Downey |
| Written by | Michael J. Bassett |
| Starring | Jamie Bell, Laurence Fox, Kris Marshall |
| Distributed by | Lions Gate Films |
| Release date(s) | 6 December 2002 (UK) |
| Running time | 94 min. |
| Language | English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Deathwatch is a 2002 film directed by Michael J. Bassett.
Contents |
Plot
The story is set during World War I. In the chaos of a trench war battle, a small group of British soldiers get lost, surrounded by a thick mysterious fog. As they emerge from it, the British come across a complex network of deserted German trenches. Convinced that they have broken through the enemy lines, the soldiers decide to secure and wrapped in barbed wire, they realise they are perhaps not alone, though there is a great deal of confusion among them concerning why the Germans seem to have killed each other. One of the men in the British squad has been paralysed due to a spinal injury and is laid under a blanket. The group capture a German soldier who is abused by all but one of the men named Charlie. Capt Bramwell Jennings, who appears to lose his head early on, gets lost and staggers around the trench looking for one of his men. The strange noises he hears make him more and more nervous until, when he finds the man he is looking for, is shocked and shoots him in the head. Even after this, the men follow his command and stay a night in the trench (most opt to leave, but the sergeant follows rules fiercely and says they must obey their commanding officer with the threat of a gunshot to the head in the case of leaving. In the night, strange noises are heard, and one possible explanation to what is going on is put forward when Quinn, whose sanity is slowly disappearing, says "You little Hun bastards, what've you been doing here?" implying that the Germans had been running strange experiments there. Later, Pvt Willie McNess loses his nerve and runs off, but is gunned down by an unseen enemy who turns out to be Anthony Bradford. A rescue attempt is made by Doc Fairweather, but McNess is dragged under the ground by a mysterious moving mound. Meanwhile, Bradford is convinced that death is inside him and insists that Charlie kill him. In the morning, Quinn decides that he has had enough and ties up the German prisoner outside the trench and starts beating him, tempting any Germans there might be to shoot him and save their comrade. In the trench, Jennings suddenly decides he wants a company inspection, but the Sergeant tells him there is barely any of the company left. The two get into a fight and Jennings is about to shoot him when two of the men humour him to save Sgt David Tate's life and line up for inspection. Jennings demands that Quinn also line up but is told that he is outside the trench, so he goes after him. Quinn kills the captain and then the sergeant (who had tried to rescue Jennings) but, when held at gunpoint by Charlie, savaged by barbed wire that reaches out of the ground before Charlie decides to end his torture by shooting him. Charlie unties the German, who he gives a rifle in a moment of trust. Charlie runs off looking for the three remaining men. He finds the paralysed soldier, appears to be able to move his legs again. However, when Charlie lifts up the blanket, he his horrified to see that Rats have been eating the soldier's legs, who then begins to scream uncontrollably, forcing Charlie to shoot him in the head to put him out of his misery. Charlie runs off again and finds the two remaining soldiers, Bradford and Doc Fairweather. Bradford has tied Doc up in wire and shoots him in the head before Charlie can stop him. Charlie finally gives Bradford what he wanted and stabs him in the stomach with his Bayonet and then fires. At that point, a large sinkhole appears in the ground and starts sucking everything into it, including Charlie. After seeming to escape from the trench, Charlie wakes up in a dark cave filled with living versions of the whole company. He shouts that he isn't dead and runs off, reaching the surface of the trenches. The German soldier appears and points his rifle at him. Charlie is exasperated, and tells the German that he helped him. The German acknowledges that only Charlie helped him and tells him he is free to go. Charlie asks what's out there, but the German has already disappeared. Charlie climbs out and leaves. Later, another team of soldiers marches up to the trench. Whether this is the same team is never revealed. Presumably, if it is the same team, this would imply that the trench was the soldiers' own personal hell. They spot the German in the trench and shout at him to put his hands up. The German gives the camera a knowing look, and the film ends.
Cast
- Jamie Bell - Pfc. Charlie Shakespeare
- Rúaidhrí Conroy - Pte. Colin Chevasse
- Mike Downey - Pte. Martin Plummer
- Laurence Fox - Capt. Bramwell Jennings
- Dean Lennox Kelly - Pte. Willie McNess
- Torben Liebrecht - Friedrich
- Hans Matheson - Pte. Jack Hawkstone
- Kris Marshall - Pte. Barry Starinski
- Hugh O'Conor - Pte. Anthony Bradford
- Matthew Rhys - Cpl. "Doc" Fairweather
- Andy Serkis - Pte. Thomas Quinn
- Hugo Speer - Sgt. David Tate
- Pavel Tesar - The Mudman
Films of similar theme
Some films that possess the same war/horror genre are listed below:
- The Keep (1983) by Michael Mann, about a group of German soldiers fighting a demon in WWII-era Romania.
- The Bunker (2001) by Rob Green, about a group of German soldiers hiding in a bunker from the American enemy.
- Dog Soldiers (2002) by Neil Marshall, about a group of soldiers fighting werewolves.
- R-Point - (2004) Korean horror film about a group of soldiers sent to investigate the disappearance of another unit.
