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| About Review |
Reviewer
WesCraven
Review Date
21st August, 2004
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| Movie Credits |
Director
Wes Craven
Cast
Susan Lanier
Robert Houston
Martin Speer
Dee Wallace
Michael Berryman
Screenplay
Wes Craven
Tagline
"A nice American family. They didn't want to kill, but they didn't want to die."
Country
USA
Classification
R
Year
1977
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| Errors |
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| DVD Cover Art |
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| DVD Information |
Format
NTSC
Region Coding
1
Aspect Ratio
1.85:1
16x9 Enhanced
Yes
Running Time
89 minutes
Year Released
2003
Packaging
Keep Case
Extra Features
Audio Commentary
Documentary/Interviews
Wes Craven Featurette
Alternate Ending
TV Spots
Behind The Scenes Pics
Posters & Art
Storyboards
Wes Craven Bio
DVD-ROM Features
Theatrical Trailers
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The Hills Have Eyes
The Plot
A family takes a trip into the California desert looking for a family owned silver mine. What they find instead is something much more terrifying.
The Movie
This is Wes Craven's second offering into the world of horror following his shocking "The Last House on the Left". Roughly based on the Shawney Bean Family, the shock value in this film is down a bit, though one might wonder if it is even possible to raise the bar in that respect. However, the overall quality of the movie is unmistakably better.
The setting is one of the most important parts of the movie. The endless desert makes for a very intense surroundings; a place which anything could be harboring. And then for the family to be stuck in this potentially very dangerous place is just a constant factor in how and why this film works so well. The special effects makeup are pretty solid. They're not top notch in any respect, but for Craven, someone not necessarily known for his gore effects, the work is pretty solid.
The story, while somewhat barrowed, is quite intelligent. You have the innocent family .Vs the Cannibalistic family. It's like night an day, and in the end the violent and sadistic nature of the characters switch hands, and the heroes become just as horrible as the cannibals (in theory anyway).
All in all, if you like Wes Craven's other work, you'll probably enjoy this film as well. Gorehounds will find a scarce amount of gore here, but not a film without it at all. You average and more hardcore fans will probably find something to enjoy.
The DVD
This Anchor Bay 2-disc release is purely fantastic. The visual and audio transfers just above and beyond what you'd expect, they're simply superb. The extras are also above and beyond what you'd expect. First you get an audio commentary with director Wes Craven and producer Peter Locke. As per usual Wes Craven is the best here. He always remembers nearly everything and has an enormous amount of interesting information to provide. Peter Locke too, makes the experience quite interesting and entertaining. Again I must state, Craven is king.
On disc two we get two different (nearing an hour in length for each) documentaries. The first: "Looking Back on The Hills Have Eyes", is a making of, and quite interesting. The second: "The Directors: The Films of Wes Craven", is more of a look at Wes Craven and his films over the years. Being a huge Wes Craven fan, I found this documentary to be quite entertaining. We also get an alternate ending, theatrical trailers, TV spots, behind-the scenes photos, a poster and advertising art, original storyboard art, Wes Craven Bio, and DVD-Rom extras: original screenplay and screen savers. Also included is a nice insert booklet that is lengthy and interesting.
Overall this DVD is no slouch and is one of the better releases I have seen.
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