Hills Have Eyes, The (1977)

Director: Wes Craven
Notable Cast: Martin Speer, Robert Houston, Susan Lanier, Russ Grieve, Virginia Vincent, Dee Wallace, John Steadman, James Whitworth, Michael Berryman, Lance Gordon, Janus Blythe, Cordy Clark, Arthur King

Wes Craven’s quality of film might have taken a turn for the worse in the latter part of his career, but it’s easy to see why the man was an iconic master of horror film making through most of it. His earliest films, low budget horror flicks like this seminal classic The Hills Have Eyes, show a certain spark for abrasive creativity and insightful use of their low budgets. While the film is not perfect, at least not to the extent that some horror fans love to rave about it in the grander scheme of things, The Hills Have Eyes is definitely the cult horror classic it deserves to be too. It uses its obstacles to give itself a raw and desperate tone that works wonders to cover its occasionally flawed performances or narrative speed bumps. To top it off, this latest Blu Ray release of the film from Arrow Video is the home release that fans have been dying to get their hands on with a stellar new restoration and a slew of special features worthy of the purchase. Fans of the film or Wes Craven are definitely going to want to nab this one as both the film and release are worthy of note. 

Hills Have Eyes Part II, The (1985)

Director: Wes Craven
Notable Cast: Tamara Stafford, Kevin Spirtas, John Laughlin, Willard Pugh, Peter Frechette, Colleen Riley, Penny Johnson, Janus Blythe, Robert Houston, Michael Berryman, John Bloom

At first glance, all looks great going into this sequel. Wes Craven, director of the original 1977 disturbing classic, returns as both writer and director not to mention he is hot off his smash hit A Nightmare on Elm Street. This sequel is going to be mega badass... right? Right? Oh God Damn it... The Hills Have Eyes Part II just further proves that the creators of the original are just as bad at making ultra shitty sequels as the next guy.

Taking place seven years after the original, we open with one of the survivors talking to a psychologist about the horror he went through. Can anyone cue in the "flashback" theme? Get used to it as this film is loaded with 'em. It seems he has invented a new type of racing fuel but is too shaken up to ride with his motocross team across the desert to premier his new formula. His girlfriend, the surviving cannibal daughter from the original film that turned on her family, decides to travel with the motocross team instead. They end up running late to their race and... duh duh duh.... decide to take a desolate dirt road short cut across the desert. From there, it's all predictable for you to connect the dots as their bus breaks down and they run into a few surviving members of the notorious cannibal family.