The Hills Have Eyes (2006)

A family falls victim to a group of mutated cannibals in a desert far away from civilization.

Director:

Alexandre Aja

Writers:

Wes Craven (based upon his film), Alexandre Aja (screenplay)

Stars:

Ted Levine, Kathleen Quinlan, Dan Byrd

2 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Maxime Giffard	...	First Victim
Michael Bailey Smith	...	Pluto
Tom Bower	...	Gas Station Attendant
Ted Levine	...	Big Bob
Kathleen Quinlan	...	Ethel
Dan Byrd	...	Bobby
Emilie de Ravin	...	Brenda
Aaron Stanford	...	Doug
Vinessa Shaw	...	Lynn
Maisie Camilleri Preziosi	...	Baby Catherine
Robert Joy	...	Lizard
Laura Ortiz	...	Ruby
Ezra Buzzington	...	Goggle
Billy Drago	...	Papa Jupiter
Greg Nicotero	...	Cyst

Storyline

While celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary, a couple are caravanning through the desert with their 3 children, son in law and their baby granddaughter. While the rest of the family agrees there are plenty of better and more appropriate things to do to celebrate an anniversary, they make do with what they have, but things take a turn after a sketchy gas station attendant informs them about a "short cut" that will take them in between a series of hills in the desert. It doesn't take too long before they realise they're not alone and the hills indeed do have eyes.

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Plot Keywords:

murder of family | deformity | rape | murder spree | desert | 

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Taglines:

Where the road ends, the hunt begins.

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong gruesome violence and terror throughout, and for language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ranked third at the box office during its opening week.

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Goofs

(at around 1h 18 mins) When Doug enters the house and takes the baby, Big Momma is watching Divorce Court. The picture is crystal clear. There was certainly no cable in this area, and a broadcast signal, if it could even be picked up, would likely be of extremely poor quality due to the mountains. These mountains also block the family's radio transmissions.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Gas Station Attendant: Ruby, is that you?

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Alternate Versions

US version was heavily edited (31 changes) for violence to secure a R rating. This version was used for international theatrical distribution. Uncut version is available on DVD.

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Connections

Referenced in A Night at the Movies: The Horrors of Stephen King (2011)

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Soundtracks

In the Valley of the Sun
Written by L. Stuart
Performed by Buddy Stuart
Courtesy of Tru-Gems Records

User Reviews

Retired cop takes his family through a desert and finds themselves being stalked by a clan of psychotic murderers.

I found the Hills Have Eyes to be a decent horror/thriller. Not too suspenseful, yet eerie all the same. I'm not a huge fan of Wes Craven, yet I do enjoy his movies from time to time.

The Hills Have Eyes takes the Carter family thru a terrifying experience. A retired old cop takes his family on a trip across the USA. Our story takes place in a desert. After making a wrong turn and being warned to, "Stay on the mail road, you here.", by a gas/junk store attendant. The Carter family find themselves being followed and stalked by an inbred clan of psychotic murderers. Kidnapped and tortured, the family barely escapes. Or do they?

I like this movie. It takes a little while to get going, but if you really think about the story and the characters situation it becomes very horrifying. I think the Hills Have Eyes is a must see.

Details

Official Sites:

Fox Searchlight [United States]

Country:

USA France Romania

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 March 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Hills Have Eyes

Filming Locations:

CLA Studios, Morocco

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$15,708,512, 12 March 2006

Gross USA:

$41,778,863

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$70,008,952

Company Credits

Production Co:

Craven-Maddalena Films, Dune Entertainment, Major Studio Partners

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min 108 min (unrated)

Sound Mix:

DTS SDDS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1