Strangely enjoyable

Rating: 8/10 (31 March 2007)

My main intent on watching this film was to see the first movie before the second movie, the hills have eyes 2, comes out. I wasn't expecting more than the average gore fest thats kicked out of Hollywood and given a 'horror' sticker to please your average kid, and strangely enough, this isn't what you get.
The film starts of with the inevitable pulse raising attack of unknown beings, which to be fair wasn't that great, apart from watching scientists being thrown around. Then the film slowly starts trudging through the rather painful back story of the family who are trying to go on holiday, and go on the conveniently placed shortcut.
This was where the film started to get better, with jumpy and slightly queasy villains assaulting the good guys at every chance possible, and once the characters get narrowed down, we are left with a hero.
To be honest i really wasn't expecting the gritty action that followed, but as soon as the movie hits halfway, it turns into a roller-coaster. The action is superb and intense and the enemies ever changing and scaring, this backed up with a score halfway between a spaghetti western and 28 days later and you get what i like to call, the first true survival horror movie.
Sure there has been many attempts at this before, all have failed in my mind, not just because they weren't that great a movies, but they never really had a survival aspect to it, or the ones that did, just lacked horror. This film although laden with 'shock factor' sequences of dead bodies lying about really makes you believe there's a true fight for survival, and one that will make you jump in the most unexpected of times, you even question whether or not the hero will survive, which is great. Since don't you hate knowing in Hollywood nowadays that the big tough guy with the stubble's going to win the day? Or even that other characters are going to bite it? This film always keeps you guessing, jumping and on the edge of your seat. And i'm glad that the first 45 minutes were rather dull, as it brings you into the movie, hoping somethings going to happen, until it does at the worst possible moment.
I hope others enjoyed it as much as i did. And i can't wait to see the sequel.