Well-Made And Violent Re-Imagining Of Craven's "Classic"

Rating: 8/10 (29 June 2006)

NOTE: This review is based on the "uncut" DVD version...
So I finally got around to seeing this after everyone told me how good it was. I have to say that it's one of the stronger theatrically-released horror films that I've seen and was a decent mix of good story, decent acting, and strong violence. I haven't seen the original in years and don't remember much about it, so I'm not going to bother trying to compare the two...
A family is on vacation traveling to San Diego and get stuck in the New Mexico desert. Turns out the "accident" that caused their break-down wasn't an accident at all, and the family is being stalked by a band of nuclear-mutated cannibalistic freaks...
There's really not much that I didn't like about this film. There's a good bit of relatively graphic violence, some tense moments and once it gets going, stays pretty "intense". The mutant make-up FX are good for the most part, though a few of the mutants were kinda goofy looking. I typically prefer more "underground" horror films, but THE HILLS HAVE EYES ('06) is definitely a solid film and worth a look. Seems to me that after the success of both HIGH TENSION and now this film, Aja may be one of the new "mainstream" horror directors to keep an eye on...8.5/10