Truth be told, I'm one of those guys who abhors remakes. Occasionally, there are some that are as good as the original but rarer still are those that surpass. The main problem is that Hollywood often looks to great films and tries to make them even better. Generally, they fail miserably. Wouldn't it make more sense to take lesser known films that had okay scripts, and beef those up? After all, remaking a mediocre film into a good film at least gives you… a good film. Remaking a great film into a good film gives you… one that will pale in comparison. Lately, it seems that the soup du jour is to remake horror films. And Hollywood is still making the same mistake. Remakes of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and the like have been less than stellar. Mostly they have been tepid retreads that fall far short of their predecessors.

So when I heard that a remake was in the works of "The Hill Have Eyes", I pretty much rolled MY eyes and hoped it would go away. It didn’t, and the film ended up being released earlier this year.

The original “The Hills Have Eyes” was released in 1977 and was one of director Wes Craven’s early films, pre-dating the self-parody that his “Scream” series turned out to be. His style was much more visceral back then and much less ‘hip’, and I admittedly prefer this older work as far as its gritty realism. Even when directing the first (and best) “Nightmare on Elm Street”, Craven still kept the look and feel of the film dark, frightening and almost believable. It wasn’t until after the first ‘Freddy’ outing that he started moving more into the mainstream.

In case you somehow missed this film over the years, or horror just isn’t your cup of tea, the original “The Hills Have Eyes” is a story of survival. It takes place out in a remote southwestern desert, where a family is traveling on their way to California. Unfortunately, their car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. Even more unfortunate, they are not alone. They find themselves stalked by a family of inbred cannibals, bent on capturing their next meal.

What was so great about this film is that it not only delivered horror on a physical level, but a psychological one as well. When watching it you really had to ask yourself what you would do in their situation. How much could you endure before you started fighting back? How long before you resort to the same type of brutality that was being meted out your way? In “The Hills Have Eyes,” it wasn't just the car that broke down, but also the family itself. Watching them go from civilized to savage was in itself almost as frightening as the external threat they faced.

The newer version was directed by Alexandre Aja, who gave us last year's grisly horror flick, "Haute Tension", so admittedly he at least seemed like someone who might get it right. While I trusted my instincts and stayed away from the theatre when it opened, I learned later that I made a very grave mistake. By later, I mean about three weeks ago when the Unrated DVD version showed up for me to watch. By grave mistake, I mean that the new "The Hills Have Eyes" turned out to be one of the best, if not THE best, horror film remake I have ever seen.

The basic premise was the same, with a family's vehicular breakdown in the middle of nowhere. In this case, the breakdown was definitely set up by the inhabitants of the hidden desert dwellings. The idea that the cannibalistic people were created by the atomic bomb tests that were all the rage so many decades ago was also played up much stronger in this version. And as for the violence and the blood, well… I'll get to that in a moment.

The remake of "The Hills Have Eyes" introduces us to the Carter family, made up of Bob (Ted Levine) and Ethel (Kathleen Quinlan), their mostly grown-up kids, Bobby (Dan Byrd), Brenda (Emilie DeRaven) and Lynn (Vinessa Shaw). Also along for the trip are Lynn's husband Doug (Aaron Stafford) and their infant daughter, Catherine. They are on a vacation, and seem every bit the average American family by the way they bicker and joke amongst themselves.

But once the carnage starts, every ounce of average disappears. One by one, we lose family members… each and every one in horribly gratuitous fashions. And that is where this film truly becomes a nightmare. Unlike the 'slasher' films of the 70's and 80's, where you normally didn’t care about the nameless teenagers that fell prey to the protagonist, in "The Hills Have Eyes", you genuinely start to hope that they all will somehow survive. And whenever one is lost, it is quick, brutal and horrifying. Making matters even worse is that for almost half the film, the infant is in danger and judging from the credo of the film, which is that 'anyone can die at anytime', I held my breath most of the time wondering how it would turn out. (I have a 2 ½ baby girl and all I could think about was what I would do if it were her…)

As incredible as a situation like "The Hills Have Eyes" might seem on the surface… there are in reality, truly horrible people out there. You read in the papers al the time how campers and hikers are killed by person or persons unknown. It even happens inside of people's homes. Sad as it is, the danger of running into some maniac is a very real threat. For all of its fiction, there was enough reality based horror in the film to make it quite difficult to watch. But watched it I did, both loving and hating it.

But enough about the film, Fox's release of the DVD offers up an Unrated version, which as I understand it is much more violent and bloody than what people saw in the theatre. But on the bright side, there are also some extremely well-presented special features to help take the edge off. Well, the first two require you to watch the movie again in that they come in the form of commentaries. The first is by Aja, who is joined by art director / co-screenwriter Gregory Levasseur. I don’t really recommend their commentary so much as it is very straightforward and it is admittedly hard to make out some of what they are saying through the accents (sub-titles anyone?). Alternatively, there is a second commentary by producers Wes Craven and Peter Locke. Theirs is more conversational in tone and the two banter back and forth like old friends… oh, they are old friends. Anyhow, theirs is an often funny and illuminating commentary.

There is also a very lengthy 'Making of…' documentary that details, in-depth, everything you could possibly want to know about the movie. They touch on almost every scene, focusing heavily on the superlative makeup effects and stunt work. You'll also find some production diaries and a music video rounding out the disc.

"The Hills Have Eyes" is without a doubt, not a movie for everyone's taste. Even casual fans of horror films might find this one difficult to watch. Horror film fanatics, who are famous for disassociating themselves from the carnage, will certainly enjoy it in a different way than I did, for all its blood and gore. Needless to say, they will probably laugh at all the places I cringed.

Directed by: Alexandre Aja
Starring: Ted Levine, Kathleen Quinlan, Emilie DeRaven, Dan Byrd, Aaron Stafford
Extras: Commentary by director/co-screenwriter Alexandre Aja, art director/co-screenwriter Gregory Levasseur and producer Marianne Maddalena, Commentary by producers Wes Craven and Peter Locke, "Surviving the Hills: Making of The Hills Have Eyes" documentary, Production diaries, Music video
Specifications: Widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: Fox
Release Date: 6/20/2006
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give The Hills Have Eyes: Unrated an A+.