Wrong Turn

With its plot derived from Deliverance and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Wrong Turn is the bloodiest and most brutal Hollywood horror movie of recent years. The problem with the film is that the purposeful realism and naturalism are killed by the clichés of teen horror flicks. It’s fine that it doesn’t pretend to be anything that it isn’t and openly acknowledges its outside inspiration (Deliverance is directly referenced in one bit of dialogue), but it doesn’t help itself in terms of eliciting a feeling of dread and drawing the viewer into the story. Not to mention the fact that nearly the entire film takes place in broad daylight. Stan Winston’s monster masks are surprisingly mediocre and there is zero atmosphere, though that was probably intentional. I’m giving this three stars for the horror radicalism and rawness, which are the key ingredients of slasher flicks. And for that one scare that made the tea cup fly out of my hand. (27/10/2003)

Hixploitation is a genre that almost never disappoints. This representative is average, but it was still pretty good fun. I think the second part is a bit better, though. 65% (14/08/2007)

This is a full-length commercial for Eliza Dushku's tank top. Or perhaps Eliza Dushku in a tank top? Regardless, there is no point in dwelling on what the film is, but on what it is not. It's no ordinary teen slasher/jump-scare fest. It's in fact nonsense, and that’s not even mentioning the lack of internal logic of some of the scenes. It’s from the "it was good enough" category. Enjoy. (16/10/2009)

The story has been rehashed and washed a hundred times, but I have to admit that it is effectively shot and very bloody. (27/04/2004)

I wasn't expecting anything, but surprisingly it turned out to be a rather likeable and entertaining homage to classic survival thrillers, led by Boorman's Deliverance. It’s true that the film copies all the usual horror clichés and the story can't really surprise with anything, but on the other hand, Wrong Turn boasts quite a decent atmosphere of vast forests, two really beautifully handled horror scenes and a trio of quite likeable main characters, whose actions didn't seem nearly as stupid as they usually do in these films. I liked The Hills Have Eyes a bit more, but I certainly don't find this cannibalistic contribution reprehensible either. 65% (12/10/2012)