Fans of B-movies, rubber monsters, and back issues of Weird War Tales will want to check out “The Lair,” a good-enough horror/action hybrid that sics a ravenous monster on a group of British and American soldiers stationed in modern-day Afghanistan.
“The Lair” checks off some genre fans’ qualitative boxes, thanks in part to co-writer/director Neil Marshall’s knack for top-this violence, post-spaghetti-western war movie repartee, and general eye for action filmmaking, from choreography to mood lighting.
There’s also some tinny dialogue and wooden performances throughout, and some creaky scenes featuring an indistinct group of hostile Afghani soldiers. Thankfully, what Marshall (“The Descent,” “The Reckoning”) and his co-writer/star/wife Charlotte Kirk get right here matters more than what they don’t, especially with regard to one surprisingly compelling supporting performance.