I’m not quite sure what message moviegoers are sending Hollywood these days. Or what message Hollywood is sending the audience. Take a look at The Ruins, a horror film based on a best selling suspense novel, written by Scott Smith. Smith, who is also known for adapting his book A Simple Plan to the big screen. The suspense is there, the mystery is present, we get an R rated horror film…and in its opening weekend in the US, almost nobody shows up. For years, there have been watered down horror films and thrillers where “fans” moan about the genre not being R rated anymore. Then there’s a backlash over the sub-genre of horror dubbed ‘torture horror’ or ‘torture porn’. Now Hollywood listens, and seats are empty. What is more troubling than the studio not giving screening to critics? The film isn’t that bad. In fact, it’s rather good.

For anyone who has read the novel, or at least seen the previews to get the gist of the threat at hand- man eating plants- the question isn’t if one thinks if killer vines can be taken seriously-it is how well the threat is executed. That said, the other Smith connected to Ruins is first time director Carter Smith. I have heard arguments that a more seasoned director should have been behind the camera. I have yet to hear someone say that for a new talent, Carter Smith does just fine. So, let me be (hopefully) one of the first to say: Carter Smith. He does just fine. Could it be better? Of course. But given the fact that a decent effort to keep the viewer glued to a chair is an accomplishment all to itself. Half of the new thriller-horror directors don’t even try. Some of them -even a few seasoned ones- don’t even try to have the audience care about the characters, or flesh them out. Sure, Scott Smith may have done so- but in the hands of a lesser director, that stuff could easily be tossed out of the window.

The tribe of Aztec descendants, may not be bad people, but if anyone comes in contact with the vines, they have to protect themselves and the outside world. In one of the film’s more shocking moments, they even kill one of their own. There is a clear understanding why they are doing what they have to. That makes them scary, along with the idea that they are speaking in a language not fully understood. There is another character who I feared at first was going to backstab the young couples, but, no- the guy is really looking for his brother. There is a scene where Amy (Jena Malone) has her relationship to her boyfriend Jeff (Jonathan Tucker) questioned after a moment of panic overtakes one of the group. He consoles her, and forgives her. What words come out of the character’s mouth, I found myself impressed. More often than not, a lesser filmmaker with a weaker script would have the young twenty-somethings at each other’s throats as if they never were friends (much less couples) to begin with. They even have trouble stomaching- and performing- a crude amputation of one of their party. In the book, that scene goes on for a number of pages. It all takes two minutes here.

I mention that scene, because as much blood as there was (and the plants have eaten the character’s ankles to the bone) I really didn’t “see” a lot. That’s how I know the film was working. When the biggest blood scene comes up, the shock is bigger and more disturbing. What stops the film from being truly great is that, even though some things are stated, there are a few things made more clear. The vines can smother small torches, but how about a bigger fire? Can the natives observe the trapped people from another hill or mountain to make sure they don’t plan a fake death? Do roots grow underground? Why didn’t the natives hide the jeep or take out a tire? Why does the ending feel weak, like something’s missing?

The Ruins is an effective thriller in any case. The real scare of the film though, is nothing what is in the film. It is that either the audience missed the boat or that the studio didn’t have enough high hopes for killer vines.

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The Ruins
Directed by: Carter Smith
Starring: : Jonathan Tucker, Jena Malone, Shawn Ashmore, Laura Ramsey, Joe Anderson