2003 saw an original – if that’s not too strong a word – addition to this type of movie (usually called Southern Gothic by the genre critics) in Wrong Turn. Usual story, group of twenty-somethings take a detour on a beaten path, break down and end up being variously killed and chased by a family of inbred cannibal mutants.

The presence of two recognisable faces in Desmond Harrington and Eliza Dushku, and the high production values, tend to work against the directors efforts to mislead the viewers expectations. The grotesque family are made up by FX veteran Stan Winston, and it all passes the time quite amiably, without ever working up the same tension as the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

Mild Peril Rating:

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