Horror movies in recent years decided to be less scary and terrifying, and more sadistic and shocking.

Whether it be "Hostel" or the "Saw" movies, horror films are more motivated by getting their audiences to throw up their lunch rather than giving them nightmares for weeks.

In Neil Marshall's (writer/director) "The Descent," Marshall decides to take an approach that made horror movies from the '70s and '80s so horrifying.

"The Descent" seems to be a mix of a variety of classic horror films from the '70s, like "Jaws" and "Alien" with a dabble of "Deliverance" and "The Hills Have Eyes."

Its nerve-racking, tight-spaced, bloody good time allows the audience to walk out of the theater scared to death but yearning for more instead of sick to their stomachs.

The film takes place in the backwoods of the Appalachian Mountains as a group of six females decides to take on a spelunking adventure to prove how strong-willed they are as women and how close they are as friends.

The girls are always doing something adventurous and risky to bring them closer together and after one of the women goes through a tragic incident, the women feel it is time to rekindle that adventure.

This is probably one of the most important aspects Marshall brings to this film. The characters are so complex and multi-dimensional that the audience actually cares if something horrible happens to them, compared to the typical dumb teenager character who the audience can't wait to see get gruesomely killed.

The cast is led by Sarah (Shauna MacDonald), who went through the horrific incident and has the most to prove on this trip.

Behind her is her best friend Beth (Alex Reid), their mutual friends, Rebecca and Sam (Saskia Mulder and MyAnna Buring), who are sisters, the group leader, Juno, (Natalie Jackson Mendoza) and her protégé, Holly (Nora-Jane Noone).

The group decides to take on a cave that Juno and Holly think is more of a tourist attraction and should not be any trouble to get through.

Problems ensue and the girls soon find themselves trapped in the cave. Aside from a loss of equipment and a couple tidbits of information a few of the girls find out have been withheld, the group finds out there have been people in this cave before and something might still be down there with them.

Marshall does an amazing job of being patient when he should unleash monsters on the women and his audience, using up about half of the film before anyone ever sees them.

By making the audience more nervous about the tight spaces the women are crawling in rather than what creature might want to have them for dinner, the audience becomes anxious for their big arrival.

When the girls are finally introduced to the monsters, the action is consistent, quick and very gory. From eye-gouging to skull-crushing to one person witnessing their own intestines being eaten while they're still alive, this film has enough blood and gore to outdo the "Kill Bill" movies.

Unlike "Hostel," "Saw," or even "The Hills Have Eyes," Marshall seems to be making this film so violent to add to the scare tactics instead of the shock tactics. He is not trying to make the audience more disgusted. Rather he makes them more frightened by what's going on and uses these horrific images to do so.

Another feat Marshall accomplishes is capturing so much action with limited light. The film was shot on multiple sets in England and the majority of it is in the dark.

Marshall and cameraman Sam McCurdy do an unbelievable job of catching every moment of the action but still make it dark enough to keep the audience worried every time an actor walks around a corner.

This film may not be ready to be compared to "Alien" or "Jaws," but it sure does set an example for future horror films that are yet to come.