The Hills Have Eyes (1977) Movie Info
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Movie Name | The Hills Have Eyes (1977) |
| Original Title | The Hills Have Eyes |
| Director | Wes Craven |
| Screenplay Writer | Wes Craven |
| Story By | Wes Craven |
| Based on Novel by | — (Original screenplay) |
| Producer(s) | Peter Locke |
| Executive Producer(s) | — |
| Lead Actors | Susan Lanier, Robert Houston |
| Cast | Susan Lanier, Robert Houston, Michael Berryman, Dee Wallace |
| Genre | Horror |
| Subgenre | Survival Horror, Exploitation Horror |
| Release Date | July 22, 1977 (United States) |
| Runtime / Duration | 1h 30m (90 minutes) |
| Budget | ~$230,000 |
| Box Office (Worldwide) | Major cult success |
| Language | English |
| Country | United States |
| Production Company | Blood Relations Co. |
| Distributor | Vanguard Releasing |
| Filming Locations | Mojave Desert, California, USA |
| Music By | Don Peake |
| Cinematography | Eric Saarinen |
| Edited By | Wes Craven |
| Production Design | Robert Burns |
| Costume Design | — |
| Special Effects | Practical gore and makeup effects |
| MPAA Rating | X (original release) |
| Aspect Ratio | 1.85:1 |
| Sound Mix | Mono |
| Format | Color |
| Themes | Survival, family, savagery, civilization vs. brutality |
| Setting | Desert wasteland in the American Southwest |
| Notable Trivia | Inspired partly by the legend of the Scottish cannibal clan led by Sawney Bean |
| Critical Reception | Initially controversial; later recognized as a horror classic |
| Home Media | VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, 4K UHD |
| Sequels / Franchise | Spawned sequels and a 2006 remake franchise |
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Two years ago the Carter family, who were traveling across the country, got lost in the deserts of New Mexico and ended up on an old military site know as Section 16. Over the course of the next 24 hours members of the Carter family would be ambushed, hunted and butchered by a clan of deprived cannibals who have lived in the hills living and feeding off of all who ventured into their hunting grounds. Members of the Carter family that made it out of the desert, told their tale of horror to local authorities and since then the military has been monitoring the valley in hopes of finding some trace of the beings the Carter’s described. Nothing has been reported since then, nothing until… NOW!
The sequel to the remake of The Hills Have Eyes hits the screen written by Wes Craven, the creator of the original film, and his son Jonathan. Much like the actual sequel to the original film’s sequel, this sequel sucks as well, only not quite as much.
I had high hopes for this one from the trailers and fairly simple storyline which goes like this, a small group of National Guard head into Section 16 to resupply a few scientists who are doing research on the mutants of cannibal valley. As you can imagine, the soldiers arrive just in time to find out that the mutant clan are back to their old tricks of killing and eating everyone in sight.
Two seconds off of their transport the weekend warriors lock and load and begin to bust caps and ass on the desert wildmen. And that’s really it, you think with a simple little plot like that it would be pretty hard to fuck it up, but somehow Craven and son do just that.
First off, let’s get this out of the way, The Hills Have Eyes 2 is bloody and violent and it does have some pretty damn decent kills. The ending is like watching a pro-wrestling match with hardcore rules and the only way you win is by killing your opponent, beat that one E.C.W.
There is also a truly vile scene that shows how the cannibal clan repopulates itself. In fact after watching it, I had to immediately call W.L. Paynecraft and ask for his forgiveness. Sorry Payne, I now truly know how I made you feel that night.
But these brief moments of hardcore violence and shock just can’t make up for the entire clichéd story, horrendous dialog and stereotypical characters.
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