The war horror subgenre is one that is often underappreciated in the scary movie fandom. It can be a fairly touchy subject to approach, as every historical fiction has to reckon with the real stories and horrors it is based on. As such, many films in the genre go for a schlocky, fun kind of feel, rather than a serious one, like the Nazi-zombie classic Dead Snow. But this is not so for the Canadian horror thriller, Trench 11, a little-known war horror that combines elements of zombie movies and cabin-fever bottle films like The Thing. Director Leo Scherman manages to deliver a fun, atmospheric, and scary horror movie while showing respect to its World War I setting.
Trench 11 is set in the latter days of World War I, with British Army Major Jennings (Ted Atherton) and a field doctor (Charlie Carrick) leading a ragged group of American soldiers to investigate a mysterious German bunker. The team is accompanied by Lieutenant Berton (Rossif Sutherland), a Canadian Army tunneler, tasked with digging under battle lines in order to defend against or attack enemy positions. Major Jennings’ mission is to investigate the titular Trench 11, a recently abandoned underground complex said to have been run by the sinister and mysterious scientist Reiner (Robert Stadlober), known as The Prophet. Major Jennings is scant on the details when he briefs his American escort, but even he is unaware that the Germans have likewise sent a detachment of soldiers intent on blowing up Trench 11, not to hide evidence, but rather, to keep its denizens from leaving.
The film makes great use of its underground setting, with every stretch of dark tunnel promising new horrors for the characters. While zombie-like, the monsters of Trench 11 are more accurately crazed, hyper-aggressive men, making them at least somewhat intelligent, and extremely dangerous. In addition to the dark, suspenseful atmosphere, there is an element of distrust and tension between the soldiers and Major Jennings that alludes to films like John Carpenter’s The Thing.The movie’s body horror elements manifest in the small, tape-worm-like parasites that have infected the German soldiers. These disgusting creepy-crawlies pour out of open wounds and writhe and wriggle in the gaping chest cavity of one soldier. While tragically few, these are some of the best moments in Trench 11. The impressive make-up effects continue with realistic gore and an excellent head-explosion courtesy of a period-accurate trench gun.
Though the effects and atmosphere are great, Trench 11 really shines with its respectful treatment of its setting. Opting to go with the less-visited World War I setting, Leo Scherman shows audiences accurate uniforms, period-correct weapons, and the real-life horror of war in tunnels and trenches. The place names are thoughtfully researched, and there is even a nod to the controversial use of “Tabloid’s Forced March”, a pill consisting of caffeine and cocaine used by soldiers to “pep up”. Though, it must be stated that the script cheekily implies it was an American invention, while it was actually only issued to British soldiers. All in all, the historical setting here is top-notch, especially given its budget.
While impressive in many ways, Trench 11 does struggle to keep the tension going through the quiet parts. Long stretches of expository dialogue undercut the creepy atmosphere, and some of the characters seem pretty one dimensional, even for a horror movie. Though, there is some great enemy-of-my-enemy chemistry between Lieutenant Berton and Kapitan Müller (Shaun Benson). The best performance in the film comes from Robert Stadlober, who gives Reiner a sort of charming yet scary arrogance with allusions to Christoph Waltz’s Hans Landa from Inglourious Basterds. Though, the character’s proto-Nazi ranting is a bit ham-fisted at times, and makes one wonder why the film was not set during World War II instead.
Trench 11 is a horror film set during a major war that does not forget its setting while dishing out scares. It pulls from conventional horror tropes like zombie flicks and body horror, and gives said tropes a “war crimes” creepiness that works really well. The performances are not perfect, but the main villain entertainingly soaks up all the attention when he’s on screen. It struggles a bit with pacing, but the high points are equal parts fun and skin-crawling, making it a great pick as a slow-burn body horror. In the end, Trench 11 is a fun historical horror that will really creep its viewers out, and won’t offend history buffs while doing it!
