The Hills Have Eyes (2006)

Director:

Alexandre Aja

Writers:

Alexandre Aja (screenplay) &
Grégory Levasseur (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

10 March 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

The lucky ones die first.

Plot:

A suburban American family is being stalked by a group of psychotic people who live in the desert, far away from civilization.

Plot Keywords:

Desert | Gas Station | Cannibal | Trailer | Nuclear Testing

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Aaron Stanford	...	Doug Bukowski
Kathleen Quinlan	...	Ethel Carter
Vinessa Shaw	...	Lynn Carter
Emilie de Ravin	...	Brenda Carter
Dan Byrd	...	Bobby Carter
Tom Bower	...	Gas Station Attendant
Billy Drago	...	Papa Jupiter
Robert Joy	...	Lizard
Ted Levine	...	Big Bob Carter
Desmond Askew	...	Big Brain
Ezra Buzzington	...	Goggle
Michael Bailey Smith	...	Pluto
Laura Ortiz	...	Ruby
Gregory Nicotero	...	Cyst (as Greg Nicotero)
Maisie Camilleri Preziosi	...	Baby Catherine
Ivana Turchetto	...	Big Mama
Maxime Giffard	...	First Victim
Judith Jane Vallette	...	Small Deformed Child
Adam Perrell	...	Small Deformed Child

Directed by
Alexandre Aja

Writing credits
Alexandre Aja		(screenplay) &
Grégory Levasseur		(screenplay) (as Gregory Levasseur)
Wes Craven		(1977 film)

Produced by
Wes Craven	....	producer
Frank Hildebrand	....	executive producer
Samy Layani	....	producer: Morocco
Inigo Lezzi	....	line producer: Morocco
Peter Locke	....	producer
Marianne Maddalena	....	producer
Cody Zwieg	....	associate producer

Original Music by
tomandandy

Cinematography by
Maxime Alexandre

Film Editing by
Baxter

Casting by
Mark Bennett

Production Design by
Joseph C. Nemec III

Art Direction by
Grégory Levasseur
Tamara Marini		(supervising art director)

Set Decoration by
Alessandra Querzola

Costume Design by
Danny Glicker

Makeup Department
Howard Berger	....	special makeup effects designer
Salima Oulad Dahhou	....	hair stylist (as Salima Ouled Dahhou)
Karl Derrick	....	on-set special effects makeup artist
Massimiliano Duranti	....	hair department head
Jake Garber	....	special makeup effects shop supervisor
Grady Holder	....	dental prosthetics: K.N.B. EFX Group
Abounouom Mariam Lee	....	makeup artist (as Mariam Lee)
Mario Michisanti	....	makeup department head
Gregory Nicotero	....	special makeup effects designer (as Greg Nicotero)
Scott Patton	....	makeup designer
Matteo Silvi	....	key makeup artist
Kevin Wasner	....	on-set special effects makeup artist

Production Management
Tina Anderson	....	post-production supervisor
Moncef Belam	....	production chief
Fettah Lahouissi	....	production manager
Alix Taylor	....	executive in charge of production

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Adil Abdelwahab	....	first assistant director: second unit
Grégory Levasseur	....	second unit director
Jon-Luke Lourens	....	second assistant director
Shamiel Soni	....	second second assistant director
Franklin A. Vallette	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Cristina Cecili	....	head painter
Mark Fruin	....	property master
Armordillo Design & Construction Ltd	....	set design and construction
Harry Pain	....	assistant art director
Lorenzo Sartor	....	carpenter
Luigi Sergianni	....	construction manager

Sound Department
Richard Adrian	....	sound designer
Christopher Alba	....	assistant sound editor
Albert Bailey	....	sound mixer
Dane A. Davis	....	sound designer
Ezra Dweck	....	sound re-recording mixer
François Eudes	....	sound designer (as François-Eudes Chanfrault)
J. Aloysius Flanagan III	....	sound re-recordist
Ginger Geary	....	foley artist
Ronald Kelly	....	assistant foley editor
Mark Larry	....	supervising sound editor
Ryan Maguire	....	foley mixer
Kimberly R. McCord	....	dialogue editor
Carla Murray	....	sound effects editor
Chris Navarro	....	adr recordist
Dick Philip	....	boom operator
Ken S. Polk	....	sound re-recording mixer
Sean Rowe	....	foley artist
Solange S. Schwalbe	....	sound editor
Frank Smathers	....	supervising adr editor
Eric Thompson	....	adr mixer
Bryan O. Watkins	....	sound effects editor

Special Effects by
Danilo Bollettini	....	special effects coordinator
Akihito Ikeda	....	special effects makeup: KNB EFX Group Inc.
Jason Pinsker	....	lab technician: KNB EFX Group
Franco Ragusa	....	special effects supervisor
Dirk Rogers	....	special effects technician: K.N.B. EFX
Lino Stavole	....	mold/lab technician: K.N.B. EFX Group
Patricia Urias	....	3D transfer technician
Patricia Urias	....	foam runner
Lindsay Vivian	....	special effects runner
Jenny Wallace	....	special effects runner

Visual Effects by
Laurent Ben-Mimoun	....	digital matte painter
Chad Goei	....	digital artist
Jamison Scott Goei	....	visual effects supervisor
Tom Haney	....	digital compositor
Wing Kwok	....	digital compositor
Laura LeFaivre	....	visual effects producer
Noll Linsangan	....	digital compositor
Darin McCormick-Millett	....	digital opticals producer: Pacific Title and Art Studio
Sookie Park	....	lead compositor

Stunts
Guiomar Alonso	....	stunt double: Laura Ortiz
Joseph Beddelem	....	stunt rigger
Philippe Losson	....	stunt performer
Jason Oettle	....	stunt rigger
Cedric Proust	....	stunt coordinator
Florian Robin	....	stunt double: Aaron Stanford
Florian Robin	....	stunts
Rainer Werner	....	stunt rigger
Othman Ilyassa	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Alessandro Cardelli	....	gaffer
Andrei Cretan	....	assistant camera
Ancuta Iordachescu	....	focus puller: "c" camera, second unit
Ionut Lupulescu	....	focus puller: "b" camera
Imad Rechiche	....	assistant camera
Greg Taieb	....	video assist operator
Lacey Terrell	....	still photographer
Valerio Villalba	....	focus puller
Erik Wilson	....	camera operator
Erik Wilson	....	director of photography: second unit

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Nancy Au	....	costume department supervisor: Los Angeles (as Nancy Capper)
Kelly Chambers	....	wardrobe assistant
Anna Lombardi	....	costume supervisor

Editorial Department
Michael Hatzer	....	color timer
Mark Scovil	....	first assistant editor
Kathy Thomson	....	digital colorist
Gary Burritt	....	negative cutter (uncredited)
Shepard Hall	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Music Department
Jeremy Drake	....	musician: guitar solos
François Eudes	....	music designer (as François-Eudes Chanfrault)
David Franco	....	music supervisor
William Kehoe	....	score assistant engineer
John Kurlander	....	score mixer
Dwight Mikkelsen	....	conductor
Dwight Mikkelsen	....	orchestrator
Sheri Ozeki	....	music editor
Robert Puff	....	music preparation
Jamie Steele	....	score mixer
Matias Vellutini	....	assistant to composer
Scott Williams	....	musician

Transportation Department
Omar Darouiche	....	transportation captain (as Omar Driouche)
Najma El Mahjoub	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Saadia Aalami	....	assistant: Samy Layani
Noureddine Aberdine	....	location manager
Mohamed Atbir	....	set production assistant
Michael Barnes	....	financial legal services
Soumaya Bellafquih	....	assistant: Samy Layani
Géraldine Bergé	....	script supervisor: second unit
Greg Bernstein	....	legal services
Tara Billik	....	assistant: Marianne Maddalena
Lmahjoub Boulmi	....	animal wrangler
Mehdi El Atlassi	....	assistant: Frank Hildebrand
Carly Feingold	....	assistant: Wes Craven
Redouane Fihi	....	production assistant
Charles Heaphy	....	production financing
Abdenabi Izlaguen	....	location manager
Nazha Kajja	....	production coordinator
Nazha Kajja	....	set production assistant
Cheryl Leigh	....	script supervisor
Alex Matcham	....	production controller
Miriam Matejovsky	....	assistant: Alexandre Aja
Nanette Munro	....	assistant: Peter Locke
Heidi S. Pavey	....	coordinator: Los Angeles
Katryna Samut-Tagliaferro	....	production co-coordinator
Ibtisame Semmar	....	production accountant
Howard R. Schuster	....	financing (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Craven-Maddalena Films
• Dune Entertainment
• Major Studio Partners

Distributors

• Fox Searchlight Pictures (2006) (USA) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Netherlands (2006) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (2006) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox de Argentina (2006) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox of Germany (2006) (Germany) (theatrical)
• FS Film Oy (2006) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Fox-Warner (2006) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Presidio (2007) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2006) (Philippines) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Amuse Soft Entertainment (2008) (Japan) (DVD)
• FS Film Oy (2006) (Finland) (DVD)
• Gativideo (2006) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Gativideo (2006) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment Germany (2006) (Germany) (DVD)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD)

Special Effects

• K.N.B. Effects Group (special makeup effects) (as K.N.B. EFX Group)
• Pacific Title (opticals)
• Rez-Illusion (visual effects)

Other Companies

• Danetracks  sound design & editorial
• Lakeshore Records  soundtrack
• Pivotal Post  Avid editing equipment provided by
• Pivotal Post  editing facilities
• Widget Post Production  sound post-production
• Wilshire Stages, The  ADR recording facility

MPAA:

Rated R for strong gruesome violence and terror throughout, and for language.

Runtime:

107 min | 108 min (unrated version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | SDDS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R (edited for re-rating) (certificate #42400) | USA:NC-17 (original rating) | Singapore:R21 | UK:18 | Hong Kong:III | Singapore:M18 (edited version) | Canada:18A (Nova Scotia) | Norway:18 | Germany:18 | Sweden:15 | New Zealand:R18 | Australia:R | Mexico:D | Argentina:18 | Netherlands:16 | Malaysia:18SG | South Korea:Limited | Portugal:M/18 | Ireland:18 | USA:Unrated (uncut DVD version) | France:-16 | Poland:18 | Brazil:18 | Italy:VM14 | Hungary:18 | Iceland:16 | Canada:18A (Ontario) | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Japan:R-18 | Finland:K-18 (self applied)

Filming Locations:

Marrakech, Morocco

Company:

Craven-Maddalena Films

Trivia:

In-between takes, the production crew would stage mock-fights with various prop weapons.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: At the beginning of the movie, after the title sequence and during a long crane shot toward the gas station, the film crew can be seen in a reflection on the green car's windows.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Gas Station Attendant: Ruby, is that you?

Movie Connections:

References "The Twilight Zone" (1959)

Soundtrack:

California Dreaming

Bloodthirsty mutant cannibals in the American wasteland

The question most people ask when it comes to modern day remakes is "why remake a classic?", but the question I ask of this one is "why call it The Hills Have Eyes?" Many films have been made before and after Wes Craven's original shocker with similar ideas, so why not take the basic plot idea and give it a new title; thus making it a new film. Judged on its own merits, Alexandre Aja's exploitation horror flick is actually a good film, but it loses credibility unnecessarily just because it's a part of the remake crowd. After an explosive beginning which gives you an idea of what Aja intends to do with the remake; the pace relaxes a little as we get to know the doomed family at the centre of the piece. While this may not be very exciting, it pays dividends towards the end when the mutant cannibals start to get their own way. We follow a family who decide to take a holiday that involves driving through the desert. After fuelling their car, the helpful petrol station attendant tells them of a shortcut in the desert; but after they have a crash, it soon becomes apparent that they aren't the only ones amidst the nuclear hills.

Towards the start of the film, Aja packs the film with references to nuclear testing which leads us to believe that he wants to go deeper with the plot. However, by the end it all feels very half-arsed, as apart from a few references towards the mentality of America - these ideas never really bear any fruit. Ted Levine heads a capable cast in a role that is a world away from his turn as Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs, and actually feels a lot like a Sid Haig impression. The rest of the cast have some impressive film and TV credits between them, but nobody is a particularly 'big' actor, which actually does this sort of film credit. The real stars of the show are the make-up department, who do a great job with the mutant cannibals. They all look very realistic, and it's easy to believe that the people in the film actually are mutants. The violence and gore is fairly heavy, although Aja is actually quite restrained in this respect, as it only occurs when needed and never goes too over the top. Aja also does well with the scare factor, as he continually creates a foreboding atmosphere by way of lots of scare tactics, including the backwater desert atmosphere, glimpses of the killers early on and my personal favourite - the voices that come over the walkie talkies.

The main reason that this film works is not because of the violence, however, it's the way that Aja almost makes the audience a part of the central family. The characters are all well defined and realistically done; and this means that once we get to the horror of the piece, it really is horrific. Aja does go over the top with this towards the end, but in general the characters are very well defined, and I certainly cared a lot more about the family in this remake than I did in Wes Craven's original. It seems obvious that Alexandre Aja approached this film with care, and he definitely did have a lot to live up to after the surprise hit 'High Tension' the year before. The director certainly has talent, maybe even the potential to become one of the modern masters of horror; but I'm disappointed that this was his second film, as I really think that if he'd created something original, it could have been something really special. The fact that this film feels like an attempt for him to break into the American market is too obvious also. I do have faith that some day he'll top his debut film - but he hasn't done it with this. On its own merits, however, The Hills Have Eyes 2006 is a good film, and Aja can certainly be proud of himself for doing Craven's original justice.