A group of soldiers dispatched to the Scottish Highlands on special training maneuvers face their biggest fears after they run into Captain Ryan – the only survivor of a Special Ops team that was literally torn to pieces. Ryan refuses to disclose his mission even though whoever attacked his men might be hungry for seconds. Help arrives in the form of a local woman who shelters them in a deserted farmhouse deep in the forest … but when they realize that they are surrounded by a pack of blood-lusting werewolves, it’s apparent their nightmare has just begun!
From Neil Marshall, the director of The Descent, Doomsday, Centurion and episodes of Game Of Thrones, comes this terrifying thriller starring Kevin McKidd (Rome, Trainspotting), Sean Pertwee (Gotham, Event Horizon), Emma Cleasby (Doomsday) and Liam Cunningham (Game Of Thrones).
For thoughts on Dog Soldiers, please check out my piece on The Video Attic:
Video Quality
Scream Factory presents Dog Soldiers with a terrific 2160p transfer in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio sourced from a 4K restoration of the Original Camera Negative by Second Sight Films with Dolby Vision/HDR. This film was originally released on Blu-Ray by Scream Factory seven years ago, but that release is notoriously poor thanks to the fact that it was derived from cinema prints due to the inability to track down the original film elements. Thankfully, much has changed in the intervening years and we are finally getting the film in its full 16mm glory with a transfer supervised and approved by Director Neil Marshall And Director Of Photography Sam McCurdy. In terms of films that desperately needed an upgrade after previously being botched on Blu-Ray, this one was among the top entries.
Those expecting a traditionally beautiful transfer may want to adjust their expectations; this presentation rocks our world. but that is due to it preserving its grimy, filmic 16mm roots. The sumptuous natural film grain allows for a great level of detail and clarity in the natural environment, the production design, the special effects and more. The texture on display in the gory makeup, the outfits and within the cabin are unbelievable. The special effects present with impressive clarity that makes the work all the more visceral, such as when torsos are being ripped apart. The grain resolves incredibly well with nothing ever feeling overly clumpy even during the smoky or murky environments. This transfer has done a great job of cleaning up much of the print damage even if a few specks made it through the restoration gauntlet. This presentation preserves the original look of the film with the added resolution making elements seem more immediate and natural.
While this is not a film bursting with vibrant colors, the Dolby Vision presentation with increased color output is sure to impress with its depth and nuance. While the lion’s share of the film takes place in a dark cabin during the night, there is a world of nuance to be found within this setting along with the more icy looking daytime scenes. The new presentation features some colors in the production design and effects such as the orange of fire or the blood that flows freely that pops off the screen with an unforgettable intensity. Lighting is an essential part of building the tension of this film and this disc handles every slight environmental change with ease. The black levels are very strong with next-to-nothing in the way of crush present, and white levels show no evidence of blooming. There does not appear to be any jarring digital anomalies such as compression artifacts, banding or any other such nuisances. In terms of capturing the intended aesthetic of a film, the team at Scream Factor have a winner of their hands.
Audio Quality
The 4K UHD Blu-Ray disc comes with the previously released DTS-HD 5.1 and 2.0 Master Audio tracks, both of which serve the movie well enough but could have benefitted from an upgrade. These older DTS tracks do allow for many moments with the immersive sound of the wolves descending on the cabin in a memorable way. While the track utilizes a powerful soundscape, there are admittedly moments where the action could be a little more nuanced in execution. Fidelity occasionally struggles in the most chaotic set pieces so that sounds blend into one another rather than having a clear distinction. Environmental sounds such as gunfire and the clawing against the cabin are rendered with the most authority. Dialogue is far from incomprehensible, but distinct clarity sometimes struggles as it sometimes verges on distortion. There is also at least an audio pop or two that has not been cleaned since the last time that Scream Factory released this one. The score holds up well and is used impeccably to establish the mood of the story. There is room for improvement, but this audio track gets you where you need to go fairly well. English SDH subtitles are provided for those who want them.
Special Features
Disc One (4K UHD)
- Audio Commentary #1: Writer And Associate Professor Of Film Alison Peirse delivers a new very compelling and thoughtful commentary track in which she looks at this werewolf film through a slasher lens, how the film plays with certain horror tropes, the place of werewolves in fiction over the decades, the dynamics between the characters, the importance of the Scottish locale, the unexpected layers to this film and more.
- Audio Commentary #2: Director Neil Marshall delivers this archival commentary track which is jam-packed with great information including his initial development of this idea, how Jason Statham almost starred in this one, the homages to other films, his work with the performers, how he focused on emotional authenticity rather than technical accuracy, inaccuracies within Wikipedia entries, the atmosphere on the set, what he learned from helming his first feature, and much more.
- Audio Commentary #3: Producers David Allen And Brian O’Toole deliver the final archival commentary track in which they fill-in details that Marshall may have not delved into as much including deleted nude scenes, the ADR needed in certain scenes, the disagreements over the title, some bloopers they missed until after the film was released, the changes that were made to the script, and much more.
Disc Two (Blu-Ray)
- Audio Commentary #1: Writer And Associate Professor Of Film Alison Peirse
- Audio Commentary #2: Director Neil Marshall
- Audio Commentary #3: Producers David Allen And Brian O’Toole
- Werewolves, Crawlers, Cannibals and More – An Interview with Neil Marshall: A nearly 39-minute new interview with director Neil Marshall in which he discusses his dad developing his early love of horror films, the events that inspired him to believe he could actually be a filmmaker, rewriting the script for Dog Soldiers over six years, the ideas he had to continue this as a franchise, developing the idea for The Descent, his joy knowing somebody believed in his insane vision for Doomsday, how it felt working on bigger budget projects, the valuable lessons he learned on Doomsday, working in television, and so much more that puts his career into perspective.
- A History Of Lycanthropy – Author Gavin Baddeley On Werewolf Cinema: A great new 33-minute piece in which Baddeley begins discusses the state of British horror in the ‘70s and ‘80s and the impact Dog Soldiers had on the industry at large. The author then begins to take us on a journey through the different types of werewolves, the different appearances of werewolves in various films, the shifting tones over the years, the deeper plots that werewolves serve and how all of this ties into Dog Soldiers.
- Werewolves, Folklore and Cinema – A Video Essay By Author Mikel J. Koven: A nearly 24-minute new video essay which parses the classic folklore from what cinema has offered up to us over the years including the place of ritual magic and transformation, the output of horror films in the Golden Age of Hollywood and their distinct aspects, the deeper thematic resonance of werewolf tales and more.
- Werewolves vs. Soldiers: A substantial 62-minute documentary which features tons of great interviews with the cast and creative team in which they discuss their aspirations for making the film, how they got involved with the project, the passion of Neil Marshall, getting the look right for the werewolves, the experiences they had on set, shooting chronologically, finding the tone of the film and more.
- A Cottage In The Woods: A nearly 14-minute featurette in which Production Designer Simon Bowles takes a closer look at the production design and set building in the film including inspirations, the most difficult ones to construct and more.
- Theatrical Trailers: Five trailers totaling five minutes are provided here.
- Dog Soldiers Photo Gallery: A collection of stills from the film are provided here.
- Behind The Scenes Photo Gallery: A collection of behind the scenes photos are provided here mostly focusing on the special effects work.
- Combat – A Short Film By Director Neil Marshall: A nearly eight-minute short film is provided here which equates a group of men going to a pub trying to pick up women with going to war.
Final Thoughts
Dog Soldiers is a terrific feature debut from director Neil Marshall which uses werewolf lore in interesting and exciting ways which makes this particular subgenre feel fresh once again. Whereas lesser movies would have relied solely on crude digital effects to bring these horrific visions to life, which would have aged this film terribly, this one mostly used practical effects which boosts the charm level tenfold. The performances are rock solid across the board, and the film maintains a keen sense of pacing without overstaying its welcome. This one became a cult hit for a reason. Scream Factory has provided the film with a 4K UHD Blu-Ray release that boasts a terrific A/V presentation and an assortment of special features that are not to be missed. Even if you already own this one on Blu-Ray, you owe it to yourself to upgrade and see this film in the best presentation possible. Highly Recommended
Dog Soldiers (Collector’s Edition) is currently available to purchase on 4K UHD + Blu-Ray Combo Pack.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Scream Factory has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.