The Ruins (2008)

Directed by Carter Smith [Other horror films: Swallowed (2022)]

It’s been some time since I’ve seen this film. If I had to guess, I’d say around ten years or so. I can’t remember if I’ve seen it once or twice, but I do remember enjoying it whenever it was I last saw it, and I can say that, after seeing it again with fresh eyes, that’s largely still true.

Based on a novel of the same title by Scott Smith (a novel I’ve not read, but am interested in possibly reading in the future), the idea is pretty simple – six unfortunate souls in Mexico decided to go to a ruin that’s not good for their health, largely out of their control. It’s a somewhat bleak film, as there’s very little within their control in the situation they find themselves in, and it’s done pretty well.

The cast is solid – the six performances really worth mentioning would be Jonathan Tucker, Shawn Ashmore, Jena Malone, Laura Ramsey, Joe Anderson, and Sergio Calderón. It’s true that Calderón doesn’t have a lot to do aside from look threatening, but he does it well. Ashmore (who I know as Bobby Drake from the X-Men films, but has also been in Mother’s Day, Devil’s Gate, Wolf Girl, The Day, and Solstice) is more likable than Tucker (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), but Tucker’s character is pretty good.

Jena Malone (Antebellum) reminded me of an actress on the tip of my tongue, but I can’t place her. Either way, Malone was pretty solid, and more stable than Laura Ramsey (Cruel World). I was hoping that Joe Anderson (The Crazies, Abattoir, The Reckoning) would have a bit more to do than he did, as I rather enjoyed his character, but it wasn’t to be.

The gore here can be pretty grisly. See, plants that grow around this ruin can get into your body if you have an open wound, and this happens to a couple of people. Not only does someone have their body cut in multiple places to pull out weeds, another individual has their legs cut off. That particular scene wasn’t too gory, but there’s a later one in which someone, under heavy mental stress, takes a knife to themselves in order to rid their body of the parasitic weeds, and that one can be trying.

It’s at this juncture that I should profess an odd love of plant-based horror. There’s not too many examples that come to mind, but those that do (including the somewhat awful Revenge of Doctor X) are films I have somewhat of an affinity for. I’ve always found malicious plant-life (or not even malicious – it’s just how they evolved) an interesting idea in horror. I have to imagine it comes from my love of Goosebumps as a child – Stay Out of the Basement, both the book and the two-part episode, are favorites of mine.

And on that note, I do wish we had some opportunity in this movie to learn more about these plants. Sure, the terror is in not knowing or understanding what exactly the characters are facing, but even so, it’d have been nice to have a biologist’s perspective, or even one of the Mayans who could perhaps manage some broken English.

Related, I understand where the Mayans are coming from, but wouldn’t it have been better to have a constant guard around the ruins as opposed to just trying to contain the problem after it was too late? Preventative measures, and all that.

I am aware that certainly they tried, but the problem is that the Mayans speak, well, Mayan, and can’t effectively communicate with people who don’t speak Mayan. If you’re trying to prevent people from going near this particular ruin, it might benefit them to at least learn Spanish, as many of those who approach the ruins could at least effectively be warned away.

Oh, and one last thing – did it never occur to any of the characters to possibly burn the plants? Sure, it might have been suicide, but I’d have definitely tried to light the plants on fire as opposed to starving to death with roots and weeds growing inside of me.

Despite those small issues, The Ruins is a well-made film. I don’t know what was changed from the novel, if anything, but it’s a high-budget film that’s somewhat dreary at times (and definitely could have done with an ending packing a bit more of a punch), plenty gory, and an overall enjoyable watch. It’s not stellar, but it is good.

7.5/10