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The Hills Have Eyes (2006 film)
Encyclopedia
The Hills Have Eyes is a 2006 horror film
and remake
of Wes Craven
's 1977 film The Hills Have Eyes
. Written by filmmaking partners Alexandre Aja
and Grégory Levasseur of the French horror film Haute Tension
, and directed by Aja, the film follows a family who becomes the target of a group of murderous mutants after their car breaks down in the desert.
The film was released theatrically in the United States
and United Kingdom
on March 10, 2006. It earned $15.5 million in its opening weekend in the U.S., where it was originally rated NC-17 for strong gruesome violence, but was later edited down to an R-rating. An unrated DVD version was released on June 20, 2006. A sequel, The Hills Have Eyes 2
, was released in theaters March 23, 2007.
) and her husband, Bob Carter (Ted Levine
) are traveling from Cleveland, Ohio
to San Diego, California
. Along with them is their daughter Brenda (Emilie de Ravin
), son Bobby (Dan Byrd
), eldest daughter Lynn (Vinessa Shaw
), her husband Doug Bukowski (Aaron Stanford
), their baby Catherine (Maisie Camilleri Preziosi), and the German Shepherds, Beauty and Beast.
After driving a few miles, the tires are punctured by a hidden spike belt. Bob returns to the gas station for a tow truck. Beauty runs into the hills and Bobby chases after her, eventually finding her corpse. Frightened, he runs, slips and falls, going unconscious. A young female mutant named Ruby (Laura Ortiz) comes across him and is intrigued, while her brother Goggle (Ezra Buzzington
) chews over the dead dog. When Bob reaches the station, he finds the hysterical attendant (Tom Bower
), who ultimately commits suicide. In fear, Bob tries to flee but gets attacked by the mutant leader, Papa Jupiter (Billy Drago
). He is carried off into the mining caves by Jupiter, along with Jupiter's eldest son, Lizard (Robert Joy
), and Pluto.
When Bobby awakes, he returns and does not tell his family of Beauty. As the family tries to sleep, Pluto sneaks into the trailer and attempts to rape Brenda. The others discover that Bob has been tied to a tree and set on fire. Doug unties Bob, but he is already dead by then. Lizard slips inside the trailer, throws Pluto off, and rapes Brenda himself. Lynn returns to the trailer and is greeted by Lizard and Pluto, who are holding Catherine and Brenda. Lizard forces open Lynn's blouse and sucks her breasts. Ethel attempts to pulverize Lizard but he shoots her and Lynn as well. The gun is out of bullets before Lizard can shoot Brenda, and he and Pluto flee with Catherine.
Doug and Bobby return to the trailer and discover the bodies. The next morning, Doug goes off in pursuit of their attackers. He finds an abandoned nuclear testing
village and enters the house where Catherine is kept. He is knocked unconscious by Big Mama (Ivana Turchetto), and awakes in an icebox filled with human body parts. He frees himself and tries to find Catherine, only to encounter Big Brain (Desmond Askew
). Big Brain tells him the story of the mutants, who were mutated by the fallout from the nuclear tests. Doug is then attacked by Pluto and loses two fingers in the ensuing struggle. He momentarily distracts Pluto and then kills him with the blade of his own axe.
Doug surprises the mutant Cyst (Gregory Nicotero
) outside and uses Pluto's axe to kill him, while Big Brain is ultimately killed by Beast. Lizard takes a cleaver
and prepares to kill Catherine, but finds that instead of Catherine, it is a pig. Ruby has taken Catherine and run into the hills; Lizard chases her, enraged by her deceit. Doug starts chasing Ruby as well. At the trailer, Ethel's body is dragged into the hills, and Bobby finds Papa Jupiter eating Ethel's heart. Jupiter pursues Bobby to the trailer, where Brenda releases gas from the propane tanks. Bobby binds Papa Jupiter's hand to the window and he and Brenda escape. The trailer then expolodes.
In the hills, Ruby is about to return Catherine to Doug when Lizard attacks. Doug shoots Lizard three times. Ruby gives Catherine back to Doug, who does not notice Lizard stand up, having survived. Ruby throws herself at Lizard, plunging them over a cliff, to stop Lizard from shooting Doug and Catherine, and sacrificing herself in the process. Bobby and Brenda walk through the ruins of the trailer and find Papa Jupiter still alive, though impaled. Brenda kills Papa Jupiter with a pickaxe and then spots Doug with Catherine and Beast. The four are reunited. As they celebrate their apparent victory, a pair of anonymous binoculars watches from the hills.
, director and writer of the original film considered a remake after he saw the success of other horror remakes such as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
and The Amityville Horror
. The search then began for filmmakers to helm the project. Marianne Maddalena, Craven's long time producing partner, came across Alexandre Aja
and his art director/collaborator Grégory Levasseur who had previously made the French slasher film Haute Tension
. After showing the film to Craven and the rest of the production crew, they were impressed with the pair. Craven comments that they "demonstrated a multi-faceted understanding of what is
profoundly terrifying" and "After viewing the film and then meeting the film makers, I knew
I wanted to work with them." Aja and Levasseur then began to re-write the story in what is the pair's first American production.
Director Aja and art director Grégory Levasseur chose not to film in the original's filming location of Victorville, California
, and instead scouted many locations for filming including Namibia
, South Africa
, New Mexico
, and Mexico
. The two settled on Ouarzazate
in Morocco
, which was also known as "the gateway to the Sahara Desert".
The film, is set in New Mexico
, and strongly implies that a large number of atmospheric nuclear weapon tests were performed in that state. In fact, the only atmospheric nuclear detonation in New Mexico was the Trinity test
, the first test of a nuclear device conducted on July 16, 1945. The United States carried out most of its atmospheric nuclear weapons tests at the Nevada Test Site
and in the Marshall Islands
at the lagoons of Bikini
and Eniwetok, between 1946 and 1962. The theatrical poster shows Vinessa Shaw's character laying down with a mutant hand on her face.
and Hiroshima
", explains Aja. In addition, Aja and Levasseur spend extensive time with local residents living in the filming location of Palmdale to further grasp an accurate depiction of what the mutants would look like. Aja stated "Our biggest form of inspiration for the look of the mutant creatures came when we went to a Pogues concert in Chicago and observed the people around us." The Hills Have Eyes utilized the K.N.B. EFX Group Inc. who had done previous work on films such as The Chronicles of Narnia
(for which an Academy Award was nominated) and Sin City
.
K.N.B. spent over six months designing the mutants, first using 3D designer tools, such as ZBrush
, allowing them to use a computer to generate their sculptures. After prosthetics were made, they could be fitted to the actors before filming. Robert Joy, who plays the mutant Lizard, explained, "Every day, these amazing artists took more than three hours to transform me into something that could only be found in a nightmare."
K.N.B. artist Gregory Nicotero
was also made a cameo as Cyst, the mutant with the halo head-gear.
Jamison Goei and his team, who had done previous work on Hellraiser: Hellseeker
and Halloween: Resurrection
, had done over 130 visual effects for the film. A large part of that was digitally constructing the testing village, which in actuality was only one built street with others digitally added. The team also warped the mutant's faces slightly, which is shown mostly in the character of Ruby.
Papa Jupiter displays no deformities. However, as shown in "The Making Of", Papa Jupiter appears to have a large parasitic twin
attached to his upper left torso. The young children of the film had their deformities added by CGI, with the exception of Ruby, who had a combination of CGI and makeup.
as the character Big Bob. Levine was also a fan of the film Haute Tension. Afterwards, Kathleen Quinlan
was cast as Ethel in her first role starring in a horror film (despite appearing in Twilight Zone: The Movie
and Event Horizon
). Next, Aaron Stanford
was cast as Doug Bukowski who "undergoes the most radical transformation of anyone in the Carter family" Stanford even asked not to see any of the mutants in make-up before his character's battle in the testing village so, that way, he'd be truly frightened. When casting Lynn, Doug's wife, Aja wanted to cast Vinessa Shaw
whom he had wanted to work with since seeing her in Stanley Kubrick
's 1999 film Eyes Wide Shut
. Shaw was hesitant to play the role, but after watching Haute Tension
, she agreed, explaining: "There was such an odd combination of beauty and terror, it felt almost like an art film. So, after meeting with Alex and Greg, I decided to do it." For the role of Brenda, the filmmakers sought a young actress who had relatively little exposure and found it in Emilie de Ravin
who was beginning her rise in the television series Lost
. After de Ravin, Dan Byrd
was cast as Bobby. Byrd had previous genre experience starring in 'Salem's Lot.
Aja then had the six actors arrive in the filming location of Morocco
early to bond together.
When casting for the mutants, associate producer Cody Zwieg explained: "We needed to find actors who could not only perform the stunt work, handle the extensive makeup and perform in that makeup, but who truly could embody the fierce, primal nature of the mutants' way of life." To play the role of Pluto, Aja looked to Michael Bailey Smith
, who had been in A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
. For Lizard, the filmmakers cast Robert Joy
, who had made previous genre films such as Amityville 3-D
and George A. Romero
's Land of the Dead
. Ezra Buzzington, impressed with the filmmakers, agreed to play the role of Goggle and even watched a documentary about human cultures engaging in cannibalism
. To play the mutant leader, Billy Drago was cast. Drago had previously had a role in Brian De Palma
's The Untouchables
and other horror features. The most difficult mutant to cast was Ruby, who was a "touch of sweetness to the madness of the mutants." Laura Ortiz was ultimately cast, making her film debut.
Box Office and $69,770,032 worldwide.
and a critical consensus stating "Faster paced for today's audiences, this Hills remake ratchets up the gore for the hardcore horror fans, but will turn away casual audiences." The Washington Post
said: "this remake of the alleged 1977 Wes Craven classic has one very disturbing quality: It's too damned good." Some have gone on to refer to the film as torture porn. Bloody Disgusting
, however, was scathing of those who referred to it as such, saying "some may call it “Torture porn” - these people are idiots". Roger Ebert
also gave a negative review, mentioning that the characters in the film are not familiar with horror movie, and went on to cite that the film should have focused more on the characters rather than the violence, saying "The Hills Have Eyes finds an intriguing setting in 'typical' fake towns built by the government [...] But its mutants are simply engines of destruction. There is a misshapen creature who coordinates attacks with a walkie-talkie; I would have liked to know more about him, but no luck."
".
Track listing - US Edition
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
and remake
Remake
A remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
of Wes Craven
Wes Craven
Wesley Earl "Wes" Craven is an American actor, film director, writer, producer, perhaps best known as the director of many horror films, particularly slasher films, including the famed A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, featuring the iconic Freddy Krueger character, the...
's 1977 film The Hills Have Eyes
The Hills Have Eyes (1977 film)
The Hills Have Eyes is a 1977 American horror film directed by Wes Craven and starring Susan Lanier, Michael Berryman, and Dee Wallace. It is about a family on a road trip who become stranded in the Nevada desert, and are hunted by a clan of deformed cannibals in the surrounding hills...
. Written by filmmaking partners Alexandre Aja
Alexandre Aja
Alexandre Aja is a French film director who rose to international stardom for his 2003 horror film Haute Tension .-Personal life:...
and Grégory Levasseur of the French horror film Haute Tension
Haute Tension
Haute Tension is a 2003 French horror film that was later released in 2004 in the United Kingdom and 2005 in the United States and Canada. The film, directed by Alexandre Aja, stars Cécile de France, Maïwenn and Philippe Nahon....
, and directed by Aja, the film follows a family who becomes the target of a group of murderous mutants after their car breaks down in the desert.
The film was released theatrically in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on March 10, 2006. It earned $15.5 million in its opening weekend in the U.S., where it was originally rated NC-17 for strong gruesome violence, but was later edited down to an R-rating. An unrated DVD version was released on June 20, 2006. A sequel, The Hills Have Eyes 2
The Hills Have Eyes 2
The Hills Have Eyes 2 is the 2007 American horror film sequel to the 2006 film The Hills Have Eyes which was a remake of the 1977 horror film The Hills Have Eyes. The film follows several heroic, but troubled, U.S. National Guardsmen as they fight for survival against the mutant people living in a...
, was released in theaters March 23, 2007.
Plot
Ethel Carter (Kathleen QuinlanKathleen Quinlan
Kathleen Denise Quinlan is an Academy Award and Golden Globe-nominated American actress, mostly seen on television and in motion pictures.-Personal life:...
) and her husband, Bob Carter (Ted Levine
Ted Levine
Frank Theodore "Ted" Levine is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs and Captain Leland Stottlemeyer in the television series Monk.-Early life and career:...
) are traveling from Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
to San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. Along with them is their daughter Brenda (Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin born 27 December 1981)is an Australian actress. She is commonly associated with her roles as Tess Harding on Roswell and Claire Littleton on the ABC drama Lost....
), son Bobby (Dan Byrd
Dan Byrd
Daniel "Dan" Byrd is an American actor. His most prominent roles include the 2006 remake of The Hills Have Eyes, the CW original comedy series Aliens in America, A Cinderella Story alongside Hillary Duff, ABC's Cougar Town, and the 2010 movie Easy A.-Life and career:Byrd was born in Marietta,...
), eldest daughter Lynn (Vinessa Shaw
Vinessa Shaw
Vinessa Elizabeth Shaw is an American actress and model. Shaw has starred in numerous motion pictures since the early 1990s, and is probably most well known for her performances in Disney's 1993 Halloween film Hocus Pocus, Ladybugs, the 2006 remake of Wes Craven's horror picture The Hills Have...
), her husband Doug Bukowski (Aaron Stanford
Aaron Stanford
Aaron Stanford is an American actor, best known for his role as Pyro in X2 and X-Men: The Last Stand films, and Doug Bukowski in the 2006 The Hills Have Eyes remake....
), their baby Catherine (Maisie Camilleri Preziosi), and the German Shepherds, Beauty and Beast.
After driving a few miles, the tires are punctured by a hidden spike belt. Bob returns to the gas station for a tow truck. Beauty runs into the hills and Bobby chases after her, eventually finding her corpse. Frightened, he runs, slips and falls, going unconscious. A young female mutant named Ruby (Laura Ortiz) comes across him and is intrigued, while her brother Goggle (Ezra Buzzington
Ezra Buzzington
Ezra Buzzington is an American character actor for film and TV.With over 40 film credits to his name, Ezra Buzzington has been referred to as "the Dennis Hopper of underground cinema". He's played characters ranging from "Weird Al the Waiter" in GHOST WORLD to "Goggle" in THE HILLS HAVE EYES...
) chews over the dead dog. When Bob reaches the station, he finds the hysterical attendant (Tom Bower
Tom Bower (actor)
Tom Bower is an American actor who has appeared in a wide variety of television and film roles from 1973 to present. He played physician-husband Curt on The Waltons. He has held a number of prominent supporting roles including Dan Miller in the 2000 film Pollock and the gas station attendant in...
), who ultimately commits suicide. In fear, Bob tries to flee but gets attacked by the mutant leader, Papa Jupiter (Billy Drago
Billy Drago
Billy Drago is an American actor known for his roles as villains in television and motion pictures.-Personal life:Drago was born William Eugene Burrows in Hugoton, Kansas to William and Gladys Burrows. He took his grandmother's maiden name as his stage name to keep from being confused with another...
). He is carried off into the mining caves by Jupiter, along with Jupiter's eldest son, Lizard (Robert Joy
Robert Joy
Robert Joy is a Canadian actor. He is best known for his role as Dr. Sid Hammerback in CSI: NY and playing Charlie in Land of the Dead.-Early life:...
), and Pluto.
When Bobby awakes, he returns and does not tell his family of Beauty. As the family tries to sleep, Pluto sneaks into the trailer and attempts to rape Brenda. The others discover that Bob has been tied to a tree and set on fire. Doug unties Bob, but he is already dead by then. Lizard slips inside the trailer, throws Pluto off, and rapes Brenda himself. Lynn returns to the trailer and is greeted by Lizard and Pluto, who are holding Catherine and Brenda. Lizard forces open Lynn's blouse and sucks her breasts. Ethel attempts to pulverize Lizard but he shoots her and Lynn as well. The gun is out of bullets before Lizard can shoot Brenda, and he and Pluto flee with Catherine.
Doug and Bobby return to the trailer and discover the bodies. The next morning, Doug goes off in pursuit of their attackers. He finds an abandoned nuclear testing
Nuclear testing
Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine the effectiveness, yield and explosive capability of nuclear weapons. Throughout the twentieth century, most nations that have developed nuclear weapons have tested them...
village and enters the house where Catherine is kept. He is knocked unconscious by Big Mama (Ivana Turchetto), and awakes in an icebox filled with human body parts. He frees himself and tries to find Catherine, only to encounter Big Brain (Desmond Askew
Desmond Askew
Desmond Askew is an English actor of film and television. In 1983 he had the lead role of 'naughty schoolboy' in the promo video of the Wham single Bad Boys. He has appeared in films such as Go , Repli-Kate , The Hills Have Eyes and Turistas...
). Big Brain tells him the story of the mutants, who were mutated by the fallout from the nuclear tests. Doug is then attacked by Pluto and loses two fingers in the ensuing struggle. He momentarily distracts Pluto and then kills him with the blade of his own axe.
Doug surprises the mutant Cyst (Gregory Nicotero
Gregory Nicotero
Gregory Nicotero is an American special effects creator and actor. In 1988, along with Robert Kurtzman and Howard Berger, he formed KNB Efx Group, a special effects studio which has gone on to work on over 400 film and television projects...
) outside and uses Pluto's axe to kill him, while Big Brain is ultimately killed by Beast. Lizard takes a cleaver
Cleaver
-Implement or device:*Cleaver is a type of large knife*Cleaver is a type of prehistoric stone tool*Cleaver is a propeller design, esp...
and prepares to kill Catherine, but finds that instead of Catherine, it is a pig. Ruby has taken Catherine and run into the hills; Lizard chases her, enraged by her deceit. Doug starts chasing Ruby as well. At the trailer, Ethel's body is dragged into the hills, and Bobby finds Papa Jupiter eating Ethel's heart. Jupiter pursues Bobby to the trailer, where Brenda releases gas from the propane tanks. Bobby binds Papa Jupiter's hand to the window and he and Brenda escape. The trailer then expolodes.
In the hills, Ruby is about to return Catherine to Doug when Lizard attacks. Doug shoots Lizard three times. Ruby gives Catherine back to Doug, who does not notice Lizard stand up, having survived. Ruby throws herself at Lizard, plunging them over a cliff, to stop Lizard from shooting Doug and Catherine, and sacrificing herself in the process. Bobby and Brenda walk through the ruins of the trailer and find Papa Jupiter still alive, though impaled. Brenda kills Papa Jupiter with a pickaxe and then spots Doug with Catherine and Beast. The four are reunited. As they celebrate their apparent victory, a pair of anonymous binoculars watches from the hills.
Cast
- Aaron StanfordAaron StanfordAaron Stanford is an American actor, best known for his role as Pyro in X2 and X-Men: The Last Stand films, and Doug Bukowski in the 2006 The Hills Have Eyes remake....
as Doug Bukowski - Kathleen QuinlanKathleen QuinlanKathleen Denise Quinlan is an Academy Award and Golden Globe-nominated American actress, mostly seen on television and in motion pictures.-Personal life:...
as Ethel Carter - Vinessa ShawVinessa ShawVinessa Elizabeth Shaw is an American actress and model. Shaw has starred in numerous motion pictures since the early 1990s, and is probably most well known for her performances in Disney's 1993 Halloween film Hocus Pocus, Ladybugs, the 2006 remake of Wes Craven's horror picture The Hills Have...
as Lynn Carter-Bukowski - Emilie de RavinEmilie de RavinEmilie de Ravin born 27 December 1981)is an Australian actress. She is commonly associated with her roles as Tess Harding on Roswell and Claire Littleton on the ABC drama Lost....
as Brenda Carter - Dan ByrdDan ByrdDaniel "Dan" Byrd is an American actor. His most prominent roles include the 2006 remake of The Hills Have Eyes, the CW original comedy series Aliens in America, A Cinderella Story alongside Hillary Duff, ABC's Cougar Town, and the 2010 movie Easy A.-Life and career:Byrd was born in Marietta,...
as Bobby Carter - Tom BowerTom Bower (actor)Tom Bower is an American actor who has appeared in a wide variety of television and film roles from 1973 to present. He played physician-husband Curt on The Waltons. He has held a number of prominent supporting roles including Dan Miller in the 2000 film Pollock and the gas station attendant in...
as Gas Station Attendant - Billy DragoBilly DragoBilly Drago is an American actor known for his roles as villains in television and motion pictures.-Personal life:Drago was born William Eugene Burrows in Hugoton, Kansas to William and Gladys Burrows. He took his grandmother's maiden name as his stage name to keep from being confused with another...
as Papa Jupiter - Robert JoyRobert JoyRobert Joy is a Canadian actor. He is best known for his role as Dr. Sid Hammerback in CSI: NY and playing Charlie in Land of the Dead.-Early life:...
as Lizard - Ted LevineTed LevineFrank Theodore "Ted" Levine is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs and Captain Leland Stottlemeyer in the television series Monk.-Early life and career:...
as "Big" Bob Carter - Desmond AskewDesmond AskewDesmond Askew is an English actor of film and television. In 1983 he had the lead role of 'naughty schoolboy' in the promo video of the Wham single Bad Boys. He has appeared in films such as Go , Repli-Kate , The Hills Have Eyes and Turistas...
as Big Brain - Ezra BuzzingtonEzra BuzzingtonEzra Buzzington is an American character actor for film and TV.With over 40 film credits to his name, Ezra Buzzington has been referred to as "the Dennis Hopper of underground cinema". He's played characters ranging from "Weird Al the Waiter" in GHOST WORLD to "Goggle" in THE HILLS HAVE EYES...
as Goggle - Michael Bailey SmithMichael Bailey SmithMichael Bailey Smith is an American movie and television actor. He is best known for his appearances on the hit television series Charmed, where he played Belthazor, The Source of All Evil, a Grimlock leader and Shax.-Early life:...
as Pluto - Laura Ortiz as Ruby
- Maisie Camilleri Preziosi as Baby Catherine
- Gregory NicoteroGregory NicoteroGregory Nicotero is an American special effects creator and actor. In 1988, along with Robert Kurtzman and Howard Berger, he formed KNB Efx Group, a special effects studio which has gone on to work on over 400 film and television projects...
as Cyst - Ivanna Truchetto as Big Mama
Production
Wes CravenWes Craven
Wesley Earl "Wes" Craven is an American actor, film director, writer, producer, perhaps best known as the director of many horror films, particularly slasher films, including the famed A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, featuring the iconic Freddy Krueger character, the...
, director and writer of the original film considered a remake after he saw the success of other horror remakes such as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003 film)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a 2003 remake of the 1974 horror film of the same name. The 2003 film was directed by Marcus Nispel and produced by Michael Bay...
and The Amityville Horror
The Amityville Horror (2005 film)
The Amityville Horror is a 2005 horror film directed by Andrew Douglas. It is a remake of the 1979 film of the same name which itself was based on the 1977 novel of the same name by Jay Anson, which documents the alleged experiences of the Lutz family after they moved into a house in Long Island...
. The search then began for filmmakers to helm the project. Marianne Maddalena, Craven's long time producing partner, came across Alexandre Aja
Alexandre Aja
Alexandre Aja is a French film director who rose to international stardom for his 2003 horror film Haute Tension .-Personal life:...
and his art director/collaborator Grégory Levasseur who had previously made the French slasher film Haute Tension
Haute Tension
Haute Tension is a 2003 French horror film that was later released in 2004 in the United Kingdom and 2005 in the United States and Canada. The film, directed by Alexandre Aja, stars Cécile de France, Maïwenn and Philippe Nahon....
. After showing the film to Craven and the rest of the production crew, they were impressed with the pair. Craven comments that they "demonstrated a multi-faceted understanding of what is
profoundly terrifying" and "After viewing the film and then meeting the film makers, I knew
I wanted to work with them." Aja and Levasseur then began to re-write the story in what is the pair's first American production.
Director Aja and art director Grégory Levasseur chose not to film in the original's filming location of Victorville, California
Victorville, California
Victorville is a city located in the Victor Valley of southwestern San Bernardino County, California. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2010 census, the city had a population of 115,903, up from 64,030 at the 2000 census.-Geography and climate:...
, and instead scouted many locations for filming including Namibia
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. The two settled on Ouarzazate
Ouarzazate
-See also:* Tizi n'Tichka: The mountain pass that leads to Ouarzazate* List of Movies shot in Morocco-External links:* at IMDb...
in Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, which was also known as "the gateway to the Sahara Desert".
The film, is set in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, and strongly implies that a large number of atmospheric nuclear weapon tests were performed in that state. In fact, the only atmospheric nuclear detonation in New Mexico was the Trinity test
Trinity test
Trinity was the code name of the first test of a nuclear weapon. This test was conducted by the United States Army on July 16, 1945, in the Jornada del Muerto desert about 35 miles southeast of Socorro, New Mexico, at the new White Sands Proving Ground, which incorporated the Alamogordo Bombing...
, the first test of a nuclear device conducted on July 16, 1945. The United States carried out most of its atmospheric nuclear weapons tests at the Nevada Test Site
Nevada Test Site
The Nevada National Security Site , previously the Nevada Test Site , is a United States Department of Energy reservation located in southeastern Nye County, Nevada, about northwest of the city of Las Vegas...
and in the Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands
The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...
at the lagoons of Bikini
Bikini
The bikini is typically a women's two-piece swimsuit. One part of the attire covers the breasts and the other part covers the crotch and part of or the entire buttocks, leaving an uncovered area between the two. Merriam–Webster describes the bikini as "a woman's scanty two-piece bathing suit" or "a...
and Eniwetok, between 1946 and 1962. The theatrical poster shows Vinessa Shaw's character laying down with a mutant hand on her face.
Effects
Prior to filming, Aja and Levasseur had already conceived an idea for the mutants' appearance. "We based all our descriptions and directions on real documents, pictures and footage that we found on the effects of nuclear fallout in ChernobylChernobyl
Chernobyl or Chornobyl is an abandoned city in northern Ukraine, in Kiev Oblast, near the border with Belarus. The city had been the administrative centre of the Chernobyl Raion since 1932....
and Hiroshima
Hiroshima
is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chūgoku region of western Honshu, the largest island of Japan. It became best known as the first city in history to be destroyed by a nuclear weapon when the United States Army Air Forces dropped an atomic bomb on it at 8:15 A.M...
", explains Aja. In addition, Aja and Levasseur spend extensive time with local residents living in the filming location of Palmdale to further grasp an accurate depiction of what the mutants would look like. Aja stated "Our biggest form of inspiration for the look of the mutant creatures came when we went to a Pogues concert in Chicago and observed the people around us." The Hills Have Eyes utilized the K.N.B. EFX Group Inc. who had done previous work on films such as The Chronicles of Narnia
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a 2005 epic fantasy adventure film directed by Andrew Adamson and based on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first published and second chronological novel in C. S. Lewis's children's epic fantasy series, The Chronicles of...
(for which an Academy Award was nominated) and Sin City
Sin City (film)
Sin City, also known as Frank Miller's Sin City, is a 2005 crime thriller film written, produced and directed by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez...
.
K.N.B. spent over six months designing the mutants, first using 3D designer tools, such as ZBrush
ZBrush
ZBrush is a digital sculpting tool that combines 3D/2.5D modeling, texturing and painting. It uses a proprietary "pixol" technology which stores lighting, color, material, and depth information for all objects on the screen...
, allowing them to use a computer to generate their sculptures. After prosthetics were made, they could be fitted to the actors before filming. Robert Joy, who plays the mutant Lizard, explained, "Every day, these amazing artists took more than three hours to transform me into something that could only be found in a nightmare."
K.N.B. artist Gregory Nicotero
Gregory Nicotero
Gregory Nicotero is an American special effects creator and actor. In 1988, along with Robert Kurtzman and Howard Berger, he formed KNB Efx Group, a special effects studio which has gone on to work on over 400 film and television projects...
was also made a cameo as Cyst, the mutant with the halo head-gear.
Jamison Goei and his team, who had done previous work on Hellraiser: Hellseeker
Hellraiser: Hellseeker
Hellraiser: Hellseeker is a 2002 horror film, directed by Rick Bota. It is the sixth film in the Hellraiser series. It also features the return of Kirsty Cotton, the heroine from Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II...
and Halloween: Resurrection
Halloween: Resurrection
Halloween: Resurrection is a 2002 American horror film and eighth installment in the Halloween film series. Directed by Rick Rosenthal, who had also directed Halloween II, the film builds upon the continuity of Halloween H20: 20 Years Later...
, had done over 130 visual effects for the film. A large part of that was digitally constructing the testing village, which in actuality was only one built street with others digitally added. The team also warped the mutant's faces slightly, which is shown mostly in the character of Ruby.
Papa Jupiter displays no deformities. However, as shown in "The Making Of", Papa Jupiter appears to have a large parasitic twin
Parasitic twin
A parasitic twin is the result of the processes that produce vanishing twins and conjoined twins, and may represent a continuum between the two...
attached to his upper left torso. The young children of the film had their deformities added by CGI, with the exception of Ruby, who had a combination of CGI and makeup.
Casting
The casting process began with the selection of The Silence of the Lambss Ted LevineTed Levine
Frank Theodore "Ted" Levine is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs and Captain Leland Stottlemeyer in the television series Monk.-Early life and career:...
as the character Big Bob. Levine was also a fan of the film Haute Tension. Afterwards, Kathleen Quinlan
Kathleen Quinlan
Kathleen Denise Quinlan is an Academy Award and Golden Globe-nominated American actress, mostly seen on television and in motion pictures.-Personal life:...
was cast as Ethel in her first role starring in a horror film (despite appearing in Twilight Zone: The Movie
Twilight Zone: The Movie
Twilight Zone: The Movie is a 1983 science fiction horror film produced by Steven Spielberg and John Landis as a theatrical version of The Twilight Zone, a 1959 and '60s TV series created by Rod Serling. Those starring in the film are: Dan Aykroyd, Albert Brooks, Vic Morrow, Scatman Crothers,...
and Event Horizon
Event Horizon (film)
Event Horizon is a 1997 science fantasy horror film. The screenplay was written by Philip Eisner and directed by Paul W. S. Anderson. The film stars Laurence Fishburne and Sam Neill...
). Next, Aaron Stanford
Aaron Stanford
Aaron Stanford is an American actor, best known for his role as Pyro in X2 and X-Men: The Last Stand films, and Doug Bukowski in the 2006 The Hills Have Eyes remake....
was cast as Doug Bukowski who "undergoes the most radical transformation of anyone in the Carter family" Stanford even asked not to see any of the mutants in make-up before his character's battle in the testing village so, that way, he'd be truly frightened. When casting Lynn, Doug's wife, Aja wanted to cast Vinessa Shaw
Vinessa Shaw
Vinessa Elizabeth Shaw is an American actress and model. Shaw has starred in numerous motion pictures since the early 1990s, and is probably most well known for her performances in Disney's 1993 Halloween film Hocus Pocus, Ladybugs, the 2006 remake of Wes Craven's horror picture The Hills Have...
whom he had wanted to work with since seeing her in Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick was an American film director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career...
's 1999 film Eyes Wide Shut
Eyes Wide Shut
Eyes Wide Shut is a 1999 drama film based upon Arthur Schnitzler's 1926 novella Traumnovelle . The film was directed, produced and co-written by Stanley Kubrick, and was his last film. The story, set in and around New York City, follows the sexually-charged adventures of Dr...
. Shaw was hesitant to play the role, but after watching Haute Tension
Haute Tension
Haute Tension is a 2003 French horror film that was later released in 2004 in the United Kingdom and 2005 in the United States and Canada. The film, directed by Alexandre Aja, stars Cécile de France, Maïwenn and Philippe Nahon....
, she agreed, explaining: "There was such an odd combination of beauty and terror, it felt almost like an art film. So, after meeting with Alex and Greg, I decided to do it." For the role of Brenda, the filmmakers sought a young actress who had relatively little exposure and found it in Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin born 27 December 1981)is an Australian actress. She is commonly associated with her roles as Tess Harding on Roswell and Claire Littleton on the ABC drama Lost....
who was beginning her rise in the television series Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
. After de Ravin, Dan Byrd
Dan Byrd
Daniel "Dan" Byrd is an American actor. His most prominent roles include the 2006 remake of The Hills Have Eyes, the CW original comedy series Aliens in America, A Cinderella Story alongside Hillary Duff, ABC's Cougar Town, and the 2010 movie Easy A.-Life and career:Byrd was born in Marietta,...
was cast as Bobby. Byrd had previous genre experience starring in 'Salem's Lot.
Aja then had the six actors arrive in the filming location of Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
early to bond together.
When casting for the mutants, associate producer Cody Zwieg explained: "We needed to find actors who could not only perform the stunt work, handle the extensive makeup and perform in that makeup, but who truly could embody the fierce, primal nature of the mutants' way of life." To play the role of Pluto, Aja looked to Michael Bailey Smith
Michael Bailey Smith
Michael Bailey Smith is an American movie and television actor. He is best known for his appearances on the hit television series Charmed, where he played Belthazor, The Source of All Evil, a Grimlock leader and Shax.-Early life:...
, who had been in A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child is a 1989 American slasher film and the fifth film in the Nightmare on Elm Street series. It was directed by Stephen Hopkins. The film's general tone is much more gothic and dark than the films before, and used a blue filter lighting technique in most of...
. For Lizard, the filmmakers cast Robert Joy
Robert Joy
Robert Joy is a Canadian actor. He is best known for his role as Dr. Sid Hammerback in CSI: NY and playing Charlie in Land of the Dead.-Early life:...
, who had made previous genre films such as Amityville 3-D
Amityville 3-D
Amityville 3-D is a 1983 horror film and the third installment in the The Amityville Horror series. It was one of a spate of 3-D films released in the early 80s. The film was directed by Richard Fleischer and the script was written by David Ambrose...
and George A. Romero
George A. Romero
George Andrew Romero is a Canadian-American film director, screenwriter and editor, best known for his gruesome and satirical horror films about a hypothetical zombie apocalypse. He is nicknamed "Godfather of all Zombies." -Life and career:...
's Land of the Dead
Land of the Dead
For the disambiguation page on anything else on this topic, come here to Land of the Dead .Land of the Dead is a 2005 horror film written and directed by George A...
. Ezra Buzzington, impressed with the filmmakers, agreed to play the role of Goggle and even watched a documentary about human cultures engaging in cannibalism
Cannibalism
Cannibalism is the act or practice of humans eating the flesh of other human beings. It is also called anthropophagy...
. To play the mutant leader, Billy Drago was cast. Drago had previously had a role in Brian De Palma
Brian De Palma
Brian Russell De Palma is an American film director and writer. In a career spanning over 40 years, he is probably best known for his suspense and crime thriller films, including such box office successes as the horror film Carrie, Dressed to Kill, Scarface, The Untouchables, and Mission:...
's The Untouchables
The Untouchables (1987 film)
The Untouchables is a 1987 American crime-drama film directed by Brian De Palma and written by David Mamet. Based on the book The Untouchables, the film stars Kevin Costner as government agent Eliot Ness. It also stars Robert De Niro as gang leader Al Capone and Sean Connery as Irish-American...
and other horror features. The most difficult mutant to cast was Ruby, who was a "touch of sweetness to the madness of the mutants." Laura Ortiz was ultimately cast, making her film debut.
Box office
The Hills Have Eyes was a commercial success, playing in total 2,521 theaters and taking in its opening weekend $15,708,512. The film grossed $41,778,863 in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Box Office and $69,770,032 worldwide.
Critical reception
Critical reception was mixed with an average critic "Rotten" rating of 49% on Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
and a critical consensus stating "Faster paced for today's audiences, this Hills remake ratchets up the gore for the hardcore horror fans, but will turn away casual audiences." The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
said: "this remake of the alleged 1977 Wes Craven classic has one very disturbing quality: It's too damned good." Some have gone on to refer to the film as torture porn. Bloody Disgusting
Bloody Disgusting
Bloody Disgusting is a website that covers horror movies with reviews, interviews and news. It is currently run by Brad Miska, and Tom Owen. According to one source, the site has 1.5 million unique visitors and 20 million page views each month. It is widely considered to be the "world's most...
, however, was scathing of those who referred to it as such, saying "some may call it “Torture porn” - these people are idiots". Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
also gave a negative review, mentioning that the characters in the film are not familiar with horror movie, and went on to cite that the film should have focused more on the characters rather than the violence, saying "The Hills Have Eyes finds an intriguing setting in 'typical' fake towns built by the government [...] But its mutants are simply engines of destruction. There is a misshapen creature who coordinates attacks with a walkie-talkie; I would have liked to know more about him, but no luck."
Soundtrack
The soundtrack score was composed by "TomandandyTomandandy
tomandandy are American composers and producers in transmedia. While they are best known for their work in film, they have produced music for most media contexts including record projects, videogames, art installations and fashion shows, etc....
".
Track listing - US Edition
- Tracks 10-29 are all original music composed by tomandandyTomandandytomandandy are American composers and producers in transmedia. While they are best known for their work in film, they have produced music for most media contexts including record projects, videogames, art installations and fashion shows, etc....
- Leave the Broken Hearts - The FinalistThe FinalistThe Finalist was an American post-hardcore band from Houston, Texas. The Finalist was founded in 2004 by frontman Dylan Brady and guitarist Jerry Nettles after they left their old band, unsatisfied with its sound. Jerry's brother Brent joined on as bassist, and then Doug Adams joined as drummer. ...
- Blue Eyes Woman - The GoThe GoThe Go is an American rock & roll band from Detroit, Michigan. Their sound has evolved from garage punk to a blend of 1960s and 1970s influences, most notably The Beatles....
- Highway Kind - Moot Davis
- Summers Gonna Be My Girl - The GoThe GoThe Go is an American rock & roll band from Detroit, Michigan. Their sound has evolved from garage punk to a blend of 1960s and 1970s influences, most notably The Beatles....
- More and More - Webb PierceWebb PierceWebb Michael Pierce was one of the most popular American honky tonk vocalists of the 1950s, charting more number one hits than any other country artist during the decade. His biggest hit was "In The Jailhouse Now," which charted for 37 weeks in 1955, 21 of them at number one...
- The Walls - Vault
- In the Valley of the Sun - Buddy Stuart
- Daisy - Wires on FireWires On FireThe Los Angeles-based band Wires on Fire, formed in 2004 by Jeff Lynn, Dash Hutton, Michael Shuman and Evan Weiss. The band has released titles such as Homewrecker EP , Wires on Fire/Mean Reds split and their self-titled LP , which sold particularly well in the United Kingdom...
- California Dreamin' - The Mamas and the Papas
- Forbidden Zone
- Gas Haven
- Out House
- Praying
- Beauty
- Ravens
- Daddy Daddy
- Beast Finds Beauty
- Trailer
- Aftermath
- Ethel's Death
- Next Morning
- Mine
- Village Test
- Breakfast Time
- Play with Us
- The Quest I
- The Quest II
- Sacrifice
- It's Over?
- Ryan Slaying Snow Wolf Pt. I
- Ryan Slaying Snow Wolf Pt. II
- Ryan's E-dating Guide
- Leave the Broken Hearts - The Finalist