I certainly hope the book this is inspired from is better than this poor attempt at an horror flick. I remember a quote from Stephen King on the cover saying this was "the best horror novel of the new century". The movie makes me doubt that very much but who knows. Books are indeed almost always better than their film adaptation. The funny thing is that the screenplay is attributed to the writer of the book, Scott Smith. My main beef here was that the characters, particularly the girls, acted too stupidly. Some of it can be explained away by nerves or growing insanity but still. My other big problem was with the menace of the ruins. I didn't buy it. It felt ridiculous. Perhaps it's less of a problem imagining it while reading the book, perhaps. There were a couple of horrific scenes that worked really well (one medical involving legs) but a few effective scenes do not make for an overall satisfying horror experience. The acting was mundane with the actor playing Jeff being way too stiff and unemotional. This is worth a rental at best when there is nothing better left to see in the horror section.
Rating: 3.5 out of 10
Rating: 3.5 out of 10