twist of fait accomplis

The Hills Have Eyes, 1977
Director: Wes Craven
Availability: Medium (on VHS at most rental stores)

I like to think of The Hills Have Eyes as Last House on the Left's more mature older sibling. Filmed five years after Last House..., Hills... similarly explores the theme of two very different groups of people battling for survival. In this one, a relatively normal family is stuck in the desert (playing the role of the two young girls in Last House...) while being stalked by creepy desert people named after planets (paralleling David Hess and crew's part). Revenge and brutality are heavy elements in both films and you can expect a lot of quality chases and death scenes.

So what's different besides the desert and the woods? A more mature Wes Craven is in the director's chair, resulting in a much more polished looking film. That's neither good nor bad for the film on its own, but allows Hills... to differentiate itself from the even more mean-spirited Last House on the Left. Some all-around horror fun that's definitely due a special edition DVD release.

(Avoid the pointless sequel at all costs.)