The Ruins

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Lee T @Nice-and-Swarm Feb 25 My review may be biased because I watched this film immediately after finishing the book. That being said, I wasn't a big fan of the book either, yet I found this to be worse than the source material. The pacing is far too quick, the vines far less expanded upon and, therefore, far less scary, the characters were incredibly one-dimensional, and by giving Stacy and Amy more of the spotlight, Eric not only became more of a background prop than he was in the book, but the female leads went from just milling about and having no agency but still having some character, to "I'm going to be completely hysterical and irrational the whole time". Jeff and Eric were just there, watching things happening around them. The ending was crap; great job you guys, can't wait for this carnivorous vine to take over the planet! And the final, most DETRIMENTAL sin in my opinion: I will never forgive this film for giving Mathias the Pablo treatment. He was the only one I liked. Justice for Mathias. See more Donn A @RT58687407 Feb 20 it has good pacing and a couple of effective shockers. just needed polishing See more thiago s @Thiagostone Dec 10 Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom See more Ricardo d @RT43154676 Nov 23 Mesmo reassistindo agora ainda existe um frescor no filme que não morreu. Embora exista uma burrice dos personagens, ele é totalmente justificável e que causa todo o enredo do filme. Mas depois as atitudes deles são bem plausíveis e não beiram ao besteirol. Os efeitos visuais são bons até para hoje, e bons momentos de tensão. O final sugere uma continuação que não veio infelizmente. See more Jelisije J @jjosifovic Oct 31 A decent horror film where a group of friends are trapped at a mayan temple in South America and are slowly being killed off one by one. I enjoy this film because most of the characters actually act realistic to the situation that they are put in and they do not come out and act like cartoonish over the top characters from other horror movies that I have seen in the past. See more Gabriel S @Sanarel Oct 11 The Ruins (2008) is a screenplay that Scott B. Smith adapted from his 2006 novel of the same name, a novel that is usually referenced in a bunch of horror lists as a must-read—but that this review won't consider, of course. Director Carter Smith, unrelated to Scott B. Smith, directs this adaptation as his debut feature-length film, he himself in 2025 managing a modest career in filmography. That modesty is different than Scott B. Smith's prominent career in writing and his often endeavors in screenwriting. The story follows a group of young adults on their vacations in Mexico, a bit cooked with their time there already, when they stumble upon this guy that suggests they go on this expedition trip to meet his brother on this ancient ruins in the middle of the jungle. A change of pace, you know, from sunny beaches and parties to a wet, enclosed jungle and ruins as old as the place itself. Little did they know that these ruins hide horrors from centuries old. Supported by great acting, the character development is decent and well-done. Each arc, and the overarching narrative and intersections as the plot thickens, explore interesting lines of traits for each of the characters in our group, thus culminating on their closures, all pleasing according to the story premise. The plot alone is also good. The curveballs are interesting, keeping us hooked to what could happen next. You never know, and that keeps you going on and on until the end; which is where things go south a bit. The existence of an alternate ending is a clear indication that something was amiss. The original ending is too open and lacks closure, that putrid taste you feel when you bite something that looks fresh but happens to be stale. After all we and the characters endure, we wanted closure, goddamit. The alternative is to watch something that tries to wrap everything up but still… A bit unsatisfying. Another thing that might throw people off a bit is the genre: limited-space horror and body horror. Yup, you read it right. The story is good, but we are enclosed to the ruins, and maybe that is a bit stale after a while—for some people. You need to enjoy horror and a good mystery to keep going. The pacing, though, is solid. You get hooked fast and the hook keeps you throughout the whole length of the movie. Never will you bore or want to move faster. Of course, the FXs are superb for 2008. I always wonder what happened to CGI after the early 2000s, something got wrong. Nowadays, with all tech we have, it feels like the old still delivers solid graphics rather than the new. The Ruins is a good film for its genre, so good it got 7 nominations accordingly. You won't see it in scariest movies of all time lists, but you should stumble upon it on lists like movies to watch before you die or specialized lists. The reality is that The Ruins appeals to a niche, and little would you know that, if you like horror, than that niche might be something you enjoy too. See more Read all reviews

The Ruins

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