Based on the novel by Scott Smith, “The Ruins,” is an admirable attempt at creating a horror film that brings a few new ideas into the mix. Having never read the novel, I viewed this with a blank slate.  Only knowing what little the trailer gave away, I pleasantly surprised.

Four Americans vacationing in Mexico decided to follow a German tourist to ancient ruins “off the beaten path.”  The first 20 minutes or so are typical horror movie stereotypes.  The teens booze it up, have lots of sex, follow a stranger into the woods, see some creepy silent children, etc… But, when the group finally arrives at the ruins things take a twist.

One of the group is quickly dispatched by some angry natives and the rest of the group is forced to the top of the ruins.  They search for a way to escape the natives but the only seemingly plausible method of escape is going into the ruins to retrieve a cell phone they hear ringing.

Without giving too much more away, I will say it would have been very easy for this film to come off as silly based on who the main “killer” of the film is.  But, it was done well (and minimally) enough that they were able to keep it from delving into you’ve-got-to-be-kidding-me territory.

There’s a fair amount of gore to be had too.  Hacked off legs.  Plenty of skin slashing. Some cringe inducing stuff.

The DVD release is an “unrated” version which is so popular right now.  Other than a minor hand job scene (which was really silly in the context presented) there were only minimal differences between the theatrical cut and the unrated cut.  An extra 2 seconds at the end of the film provides a final twist not present in the theatrical version.

Hardly a game-changer in the genre, but nevertheless a solid effort that takes itself a little too seriously but manages to provide a good time.

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