The Ruins (18)

Jun 23 2008

**

LAST week it was trees killing people in The Happening, and this week it’s death by talking vine.

Yes, the plot really is that preposterous.

A group of attractive young people on holiday in Mexico get talking to a German tourist, Mathias (Brit actor Joe Anderson with a very bad accent). He knows of a secret archaeological dig and offers to take them to the Mayan ruins that aren’t on the map.

As they arrive at the temple, locals arrive, shouting about something, and then shoot one of the party (the one whose name we can’t remember, of course – this is pretty formulaic stuff).

Trapped on top of the temple, they soon discover the bodies of the archaeologists – and realise the creeping vines are killers.

The ‘eww’ factor comes, not from the vegetation, but from what they do to each other in a bid to survive. Like amputating someone’s legs in particularly gruesome, though at least not overly gratuitous, scene.

There is some ‘so bad it’s funny’ value to be had from this film. It’s also fairly well made and acted, but it’s mostly just boring, repetitive and not in the least bit scary. By the end I just wanted them all to hurry up and die.