In this bleak, survival-of-the-fittest thriller from Xavier Gens (Frontier(s), Hitman) the end is nigh for the human race, only it's not a deadly disease, alien invasion or natural disaster that threatens our existence: it's that old Cold War staple of nuclear annihilation. However, following a breathtaking beginning, Gens goes for an intimate rather than epic depiction of the end of civilisation, as eight people (including Rosanna Arquette and Heroes star Milo Ventimiglia) seek shelter in the underground bunker of their building's paranoid caretaker (played with glowering intensity by genre favourite Michael Biehn). Inevitably, as the survivors' food and water diminish, so do the remnants of their humanity, and fear and confusion turn into violence, depravity and excess. The spectacle of civilised man descending into savagery may not exactly be original, but the mystery of who is outside trying to get in and the claustrophobic yet labyrinthine confines of the shelter elevate the intrigue. Gens's skilful direction and the throat-grabbing performances from the cast add to the tension.