"The Hills Have Eyes" Review

"The Hills Have Eyes"

Directed by Alexandre Aja
Starring Aaron Stanford, Ted Levine, Emilie de Ravin, Vinessa Shaw, Dan Byrd

RATING
8/10

Sorry for my late entries for these past few weeks. I have been quite busy with university and getting back into the swing of things. But now that I am reasonably comfortable, I bring you a few gifts. I'll have two reviews up by today,  including this one, and later tonight a preview of one of the most anticipated films of the year. But for now, here's 2006's "The Hills Have Eyes". In 1977, horror meistro Wes Craven crafted a shocking and graphic cinematic work known as "The Hills Have Eyes", which was filmed to somewhat resemble a snuff film. This, and his other much debated original "The Last House on The Left", was the cause of much controversy. So rightfully, about 30 years down the line, a remake would seem inevitable. And I had very low expectations about seeing this. People who have seen it either outright hated it or didn't bother to give it a chance because it "stunk of generic". After seeing it, well I have to say that it's scent was more of a surprisingly solid modern horror remake.

 

"The Hills Have Eyes" is about a family travelling through the desert on their way to San Diego. They pass a creepy gas station where the attendent is a creepy old man. Immediately, I may have lost you because "The Cabin In The Woods" would be racing through your mind and making you laugh throughout the scene. But wait, there's more. The creepy man, having found out that one of the family members spotted a seemingly stolen bag full of items, sends the family on a "shortcut" through a desert road where they are quickly derailed by spikes and left for dead. Or perhaps, hunted down by strange, deformed people who live in the hills due to massive nuclear tests in the past.

 

Like I said, had very low expectations seeing it, but I was pleasantly surprised at the outcome. What we have here is a horror film that manages to walk the fine line of being both physically shocking and psychologically terrifying. It outdoes the original in so many ways, that it becomes its own work. The performances were pretty good, crafting out a believable family with good chemistry that's easily relatable in some way. At first, it may seem like the emotional connection isn't made, but once the bat-shit crazy events hit the fan, you'll find yourself squealing over their lives. The film is able to go places where few modern horror films dare not, and without spoiling anything, I will say that there is a section in the middle that triggers a sequence of horrifying events in a short span of ten minutes, you'll be left glued to your seat and absolutely dumbfounded that it manages to get away with it. It's a very unconventional and shocking downward spiral very rarely achieved. Once the spiral subdues, you're left with a strong sense of sympathy and vengeance which leads you to make that long-desired emotional connection. Let's just say, there's literally a little element that elevates the tension of the plot to insane heights.

Apart from that, the film is expertly paced and structured, especially in the second half. It's clever editing techniques help build the scares mentally, that it's shock factor actually begins to scare you. Alexandre Aja does a fantastic job of creating atmospheric tension and delivering a pleasing amount of gore and great kills most die-hard horror junkies will yearn for. The make-up and design is a thing of beauty in this, and looks very naturalistic. I do only have one gripe for the film, which may make or break audiences, is that the first 15 minutes are pretty much standard fare for a modern horror film that it feels recycled to death. If it doesn't catch your attention then, it may later in the film, but unfortunately most casual horror audiences have the attention spans of goldfish.

 

"The Hills Have Eyes" is an exceptionally well-made and well-paced horror feature with plenty of gore and atmospheric tension to rival and better the original Wes Craven classic. It plays with its shock factor to great effect, and while it may seem odd at first for the horror noobs, the film does manage to transcend itself and become not just an eye-opening experience, but an entertaining tale of vengeance, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness... kinda.