Movie review The Ruins
April 21st, 2008, 3:00 am Hobbies And Interests
Something or someone wiped out the Maya, an advanced Central American civilization that had all but disappeared when Columbus arrived.Might that something or someone still be around? Might one stumble across it, say, in “an ancient Mayan temple, off the beaten path “?One might.That’s the intriguing hook for “The Ruins,” a somewhat effective but only mildly scary horror film from the writer of “A Simple Plan.” Round up some texting, cell phone-obsessed American college kids on vacation, lure them into the jungle and kill them off as they face oh, I’m not giving that away.Scott B. Smith’s novel, which he adapted for fashion-photographer-turned director Carter Smith (apparently no relation), takes pre-med Jeff (Jonathan Tucker of “In the Valley of Elah”), his girlfriend Amy (Jena Malone of “Into the Wild”), Stacy (Laura Ramsey) and her beau Eric (Shawn Ashmore of “X-Men”) out of their swimsuits (literally) at Cancun and to a jungle archaeological dig, thanks to a tip from German tourist Mathias (Joe Anderson).And just as in “Turistas,” these clueless kids are in over their heads. They show the map to locals - “This place, no good.”Jeff, the ringleader, is decisive, determined, a real take-charge kind of guy. He just makes decisive, wrong decisions. More than once.Natives scream threats or warnings at them in a language they don’t speak. But they climb the pyramid anyway. And as accidents happen and blood is shed, the kids are tested. If only they can get a cell phone signal! There’s one ringing inside the “dig.” So of course the women are the ones sent into the dark to discover the truth about this place, the Maya, and what fate awaits them.With Scott Smith’s rep and a best-selling horror novel, a sexy location and solid young cast, you’d have hoped the studio would find a director with a little more than a Tommy Hilfiger commercial under his belt. There’s a better movie hidden among “The Ruins” than Carter Smith delivers.
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