Turistas (2006)

A group of young backpackers' vacation turns sour when a bus accident leaves them marooned in a remote Brazilian rural area that holds an ominous secret.

Director:

John Stockwell

Writer:

Michael Ross

Stars:

Josh Duhamel, Melissa George, Olivia Wilde

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Josh Duhamel	...	Alex
Melissa George	...	Pru
Olivia Wilde	...	Bea
Desmond Askew	...	Finn
Beau Garrett	...	Amy
Max Brown	...	Liam
Agles Steib	...	Kiko
Miguel Lunardi	...	Zamora
Jorge Só	...	Bus Driver
Cristiani Aparecida	...	Native Beauty
Lucy Ramos	...	Arolea
Andréa Leal	...	Camila
Diego Santiago	...	Jacaré
Marcão	...	Ranan
Miguelito Acosta	...	Jamoru

Storyline

While traveling on vacation through the country of Northeastern of Brazil by bus, the American Alex Trubituan, his sister Bea Tribituan and their friend Amy Harrington meet the also foreigners Pru Stagler, Finn Davies and Liam Kuller after an accident with their bus. They follow a track through the woods and find a hidden paradisiacal beach. They decide to stay in the place drinking beer and dancing funk and parting with the locals and they meet the amicable Brazilian teenager Kiko. They are drugged with "Boa Noite, Cinderela" (Ruffies, literal translation: "Good Night, Cinderella" - a trick used by smalltime crooks to steal naive people) and when they wake up, they are practically naked, with all their belongings, clothes, money, jewels, passports, backpacks etc. stolen. They walk to a small village trying to find a police station, they get into trouble with the dwellers and they are helped by their acquaintance Kiko, who leads them to his uncle's isolated well-equipped cabin in the ...

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Plot Keywords:

brazil | beach | backpacker | vacation | scalpel | 

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Taglines:

Go Home.

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong graphic violence and disturbing content, sexuality, nudity, drug use and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [United Kingdom]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Portuguese

Release Date:

1 December 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Paradise Lost

Filming Locations:

Chapada Diamantina, Lençóis, Bahia, Brazil

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$3,582,554 (USA) (1 December 2006)

Gross:

$7,025,803 (USA) (19 January 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Atomic, 2929 Productions, Stone Village Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min 96 min (unrated)

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Melissa George's character Pru died in the original draft of the script.

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Goofs

After Kiko busts his head open and is being repaired at the evil Doctor's house, he goes wild and lays down for the evening to heal. When he gets up, he is completely composed and acts as though nothing ever happened. Even his injured head has healed as there is no scar or bandage.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Bea Trubituan: [careening recklessly through the countryside in a bus] Are you having fun?
Alex Trubituan: Am I the only one having a problem with this?
Bea Trubituan: I don't know, I guess I'm used to it.
Alex Trubituan: I just keep thinking about how far we must be from a hospital. You know, with doctors who operate instead of amputate?
Bea Trubituan: So dramatic.
Alex Trubituan: [grinding sounds] Would you slow the fuck down!

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Connections

Referenced in Justified: Thick as Mud (2012)

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Soundtracks

"Qual É (Album Version)"
Written by Marcelo D2, David Corcos, Antônio Carlos, Jocafi
Performed by Marcelo D2
Courtesy of Mr. Bongo Records & Sony BMG Brazil
By Arrangement with Big Sounds International
Contains sample of the song "Kabaluerê"
Written by Antônio Carlos & Jocafi
Performed by Antônio Carlos & Jocafi
Courtesy of BMG Brasil Ltda.

User Reviews

Go home....before you buy your ticket

Without making this review to long, I just want to say that Turistas starts off well, and then goes way downhill once the "horror" begins. The opening half of the movie is very well developed. It draws out it's characters well, sets up moments of suspense for the horrors that will come, and keeps the viewer interested due to it's beautiful cinematography.

Once the terror and violence actually begin (which doesn't happen until the last third of the movie no less) it goes way downhill. For one, it was marketed as a torture movie, but there is barely any of it! Sure, there's a brutal killing here and there, but when it came to gore, this film was very tame. Second, the cinematography in during the night scenes was awful,with the chase scenes and violence barely viewable. You could not tell what was happening on screen, and all of the viewers of the film were lost with what was going on. Third, the last third was extremely predictable. You could tell who was going to die and when. The main villain (who ironically looks like the President of Iran) is not well drawn out, and the "climax" of the film is pitiful.

There is however, fine acting jobs done by all involved, and a particular death scene that made me squirm in my seat due to its brutality and intensity. When the chase scenes and violence were actually viewable (of which it rarely was) it actually was pretty intense. However, the actual deaths were not (save one or two), and the dumb decisions made by all of the characters may be the stupidest yet to grace the screen this year.

It's sad. Turistas had potential. It started off great, but just went in the wrong direction I guess. I have never seen a movie that fell so much on its rear.