The Lair (2022) Review

It's about a Royal Air Force pilot whose plane is shot down over Afghanistan, seeks refuge in an abandoned underground bunker, and must survive waves of attacks from the hordes of alien creatures who dwell there.

The Lair was directed by Neil Marshall (The Reckoning, Hellboy, and Tales of Halloween) and stars Charlotte Kirk (The Reckoning), Jonathan Howard (Trespassers), Jamie Bamber (Titanic 666, The Car: Road to Revenge, and Pulse 2: Afterlife), Mark Strepan, Hadi Khanjanpour, Leon Ockenden, Troy Alexander, Kibong Tanji, Cesare Taurasi, and Adam Bond (The Darkness).

There is a fear that lurks in the back of everyone's mind. Fear of the unknown. Fear of what could be out there. A fear of extraterrestrial life. We like to think we're the only ones in this vast universe. But what if we're not? What if other life forms are out there, just waiting to be discovered?

The thought of it is enough to send a chill down your spine. We don't know what these other life forms could be like. They could be hostile. They could be dangerous. They could be entirely unlike anything we've ever seen before. And that's what scares us the most. The unknown. The possibility that there are things out there that we can't even begin to comprehend.

Merging horror and action genres can be difficult, but "The Lair," director Neil Marshall's latest project, gives it a go. The story begins when a Royal Air Force pilot named Lt. Kate Sinclair is shot down over Afghanistan. Enemy soldiers quickly surround her, leaving her with little hope of escape. However, she takes refuge in an abandoned underground bunker. When she finds the underground cavern full of alien creatures, she quickly realizes that it may be more of a nightmare than salvation. The horror elements in this story were not as developed as the action sequences.

Kate's story of being out of her element and the mystery surrounding the abandoned bunker make for an exciting premise. The film's opening scenes are full of potential. This film has a mix of human-alien hybrid creatures and political intrigue, making it unique and exciting. However, the execution is not as strong as it could be, preventing the film from being as successful as it could be. An underground desert laboratory housing strange creatures make for an intriguing premise, but it feels like a wasted opportunity. The film focuses not on providing background information or resolving mysteries surrounding the creatures but on immediate action and suspense.

The film focuses on Kate and her companions fighting back against the creatures attacking them, which is done very effectively. Marshall uses his creatures to create maximum action and suspense. The problem with the action sequences in the film is that they become repetitive after a while, and the constant creature attacks start to feel like a video game. This could have been director Neil Marshall's intent, but I thought the film needed something else. The action sequences are very in-your-face and rob the film of the missing suspense. In addition, the design of the creatures in the movie isn't very unique or original, and they don't stand out from other similar films.

Worth Watching? 

If you're looking for a movie about action, violence, and blood, then The Lair is the right choice. However, you might be disappointed if you're looking for something with more developed characters and a more pronounced horror element. Kate is a strong and capable woman, but the film needs to give more information about her to make the audience invest emotionally in her story. In addition, although the action sequences are well executed, they are repetitive and lack the suspense to make the film more engaging.

The Lair Review (2022) Worth Watching? - ALL HORROR Tweet it