Writer-director Howard J. Ford has given horror fans one or two gems throughout his career, but he doesn't seem to have ever returned to the level of potential he showed back in 2010 (when The Dead was released). I'm happy to keep checking out whatever he does, although I have quite a few of his features to catch up on, but Bone Keeper is not one of his better efforts. It's another British horror movie that feels as if it's trying to emulate the greatness that we got with The Descent. Unfortunately, all it does is remind you of how great The Descent is.
A group of young adults are exploring a cave system, trying to find out what happened to one or two people who went missing in the area. It soon becomes very obvious what happened. There's a big beastie in the cave system. Although he can't provide them with any immediate assistance, Professor Harrison (John Ryhs-Davies) takes part in a number of phone calls where he can provide exposition and over-emphasise the danger that should already be obvious to everyone.
It's hard to think of what to put here that could be positive. The weak script is delivered without any real energy by the cast, although Sarah Alexandra Marks isn't too bad as a nominal lead. There isn't any tension, nor are there any good jump scares for those after such simple pleasures. The creature design might seem initially appealing, considering how it changes and pulsates throughout, but there's a strangeness and clumsiness to it that may have viewers wondering until it's confirmed that, yes, this has been realised via the medium of AI. Urgh.
Derivative, cheap, and lazy, Ford just doesn't do enough to distract from the weaker elements. Even the way he uses Davies feels slightly disdainful, considering there aren't enough changes to the wardrobe and set to even pretend that it wasn't the most time-sensitive part of the shooting schedule. If anyone can watched this without thinking "I'd much rather just rewatch The Descent" then I'd love to hear from them. I'm sure at one point I even thought "I'd much rather rewatch The Cave."
As for others involved, I'll reel off the main cast members - Louis James, Tiffany Hannam-Daniels, Sophia Eleni, Danny Rahim, Tyler Winchcombe, and Sarah T. Cohen. There are others who show up in smaller roles, but I genuinely wouldn't remember those I just named if not checking back over the credits. I started this review thinking I might try to find some more positives, but I've grown more displeased with the film as I have spent more time thinking about what it served up. Not recommended, but I'll give it a bonus point or two for the decent lighting and production design.
3/10
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