Undeniably Unnerving, and Unrelenting

Rating: 8/10 (29 August 2010)

I recently re-watched this Aja movie to give it another chance before I see his latest horror project, Piranha 3D, and I must admit it thoroughly impressed me as a truly frightening and intense movie. I originally would have given it a 5/10, which it deserves more than.
I'll start with the pros, which are numerous. The cinematography is gorgeous in the desert and is something I missed on my first viewing. Every single fear you could possibly have while driving through the desert is explored. The isolation, the potentially lethal wrong turns, the creepy locals, traveling with innocent animals and a baby, (Spoiler) getting raped (End Spoiler), getting in a car accident, etc. All of these are amped up to the extreme. The gore is well done, and over the top, but not in a comic way. It is done so realistically that it is actually frightening and frightens you. The chase scenes and the death scenes are suspenseful and intense. They have you on the edge of your seat, widening your eyes in terror and fear, and giving you an adrenaline rush that you love having while watching a 'scary movie'.
The cons. Despite it's many pros it does have a few cons. The kills seem spaced out in odd places. And my only other complaint is that the actors weren't always believable, but they all played their parts well.
Overall this is a great movie to watch. I feel very stupid to not have recognized this on my first time view, as I'm sure with the first experience it would have been in my Favorites list.