Alexandre Aja (High Tension) took Wes Craven’s iconic 1977 flick and amped it up, though not necessarily in a good way. When watching this sort of exploitative gory, rapey nightmare, it’s hard to imagine enjoyment on the part of the viewer. It begs to ask the question, “what’s the point?” The potential of social commentary of nuclear testing victims is replaced by the notion that these people look different so they must be bad guys. Any impressive SFX were outshadowed by the mean-spiritedness and lack of purpose. While this subgenre may have been shocking in its heyday, it’s played out now. If you want to watch senseless crime, why not just turn on the news?
