The Ruins - Review and Analysis by Jason Pitt for Critical-Film.com

The Ruins A film review by Jason Pitt For Critical-film.com   On paper, the premise for the ruins sounds ridiculous. So ridiculous, in fact, that I was worried that revealing the basic plot, as I understood it, would convince the person who was going to accompany me to the show, that it would be stupid, and that, really, she didn't want to see it anymore. And it nearly did…   Very nearly did. I had to reassure her that nearly everything I had heard about the film was praise. And somehow, with my infinite amount of charm, I convinced her to, and that we would have a great time. Honestly, I knew very little about the film beside the core idea, and didn't really know what I was getting us into. The film however, while not exactly frightening, contains enough solidly-executed aspects to make it one of the most solid horror films so far this year (Not exactly a difficult feat, I know), and may remain so until the year's end.   A group of teenagers vacationing in Mexico , decide to visit the location of a set of nearly-undocumented Mayan ruins, before they return to America . Upon reaching the ruins through a concealed path, they are set upon by the residents of a nearby Mayan village and chased up the hill. With the ruins surrounded by violent villagers, the group is trapped… To reveal any more than the setup would be criminal. Needless to say, there is more to fear than simply the angry Mayans, most notably the presence of plants that crave human flesh.   The concept of man-eating plants seems like the perfect foundation for a tongue-in-cheek B-movie, yet “The Ruins” takes itself with the utmost seriousness. It doesn't play for laughs; it merely tries to perturb the audience with its sequences of violence and surprisingly emotional horror. There are few shocks throughout the film, and a limited amount of gore, yet this detracts nothing from the film. The gore, when it is displayed, is quite graphic and unsettling, and provides the films singular horror aspect. The film itself (killer vines aside) plays much more like a thriller than a full-on horror film, as the characters become increasingly paranoid, turning on each other and themselves, as the reality and desperation of their situation sets in.   While the film doesn't carry quite the same level of psychological horror as Scott Smith's novel, it's certainly one of the films stronger aspects. The characters, which we know very little about, never seem less than 3-dimensional. Perhaps this is a credit to the actors' abilities, as all involved manage to create believable characters, who are sympathetic despite their flaws. Jonathan Tucker (TV's “The Black Donnellys”), Jena Malone (“Donnie Darko”), Shawn Ashmore (Iceman in the “X-Men” trilogy), Laura Ramsey, and Joe Anderson are the central group of characters. All are young actors, who wouldn't be out of place in a teen slasher movie (Shawn Ashmore is the only one older than 25). So, the fact that “The Ruins” is as successful as it is as an unconventional horror film, is a testament to both the actors abilities, and a solid screenplay.   The screenplay itself was adapted by Scott Smith, from his own novel, which may explain why it is so solid. The story follows the basic plotline very closely to the novel; however certain events are experienced by different characters than they are in Smith's book, and the ending is slightly different, perhaps even a little bleaker. Why it was changed, I have no idea. The changes are small however, and the film remains quite true to the book- hopefully enough to satisfy fans of the novel.   In the end, “The Ruins” is a very strong horror piece, primarily because it is different than what we're accustomed to seeing. No ghosts, no knife-wielding stalkers, no pretentious garbage that promises to be smarter than it is. Perhaps most importantly, no Platinum Dunes/Michael Bay-produced baby formula that panders to the lowest common denominator. “The Ruins” is different than anything we've seen lately. It doesn't exploit the current horror trends of inferior remakes, or violent eye-candy with no depth. Because of this, however, “The Ruins” may not appeal to everyone. It is different, and in nearly every way, a superior film to nearly every commercial release in the previous few years. It is bleak, and depressing, cringe-inducingly violent, but only when it needs to be. It's a change of pace from recent horror release, and I fear it won't get the credit it deserves.   “The Ruins” may well be the best horror film released in 2008, and should be seen by any true horror fan. And, as a side note… It was produced by Ben Stiller. Hmmm…   (Four stars)   This review was provided in HTML format, as your browser is not capable of displaying flash content. To experience Critical-Film.com the way it was meant to be seen, please download the flash player from <a href="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash&promoid=BIOW">Macromedia</a>.