Wrong Turn sees a group of young people on a hiking trip venture off the beaten path, and suffer dearly for it.
Jen (Charlotte Vega), her boyfriend Darius (Adain Bradley), and their friends head on a hiking trip to tackle the Appalachian Trail. They’re a progressive bunch, whose personalities and ideologies do not sit well with the townspeople living at the head of the trail. After an unfriendly interaction with some of the local residents, the group head off on their trek and fail to heed the warning about leaving the walking trail.
They soon find themselves in the unforgiving wilderness, dodging booby traps left behind by a tribe of mountain villagers, with the constant fear that they’re being watched. Eventually, a brutal confrontation with the villagers sees them captured and placed on trial, setting off a series of unfortunate, violent events. Meanwhile, Jen’s father, Scott (Matthew Modine), is tracing his daughter’s footsteps through the town and into the woods when he too finds himself at the mercy of the mountain-folk.
A reboot of the 2003 horror film of the same name, the modern rendition of Wrong Turn only loosely follows the plot of the original, this time around adding more to the story by humanising the people that live in the mountain. Humanising them only to the point of revealing that community and family values are sacred to them, and their misunderstood nature leads them to perform cruel and deadly acts. It’s a big ask from director Mike P. Nelson to have his audience feel empathy for these violent killers, but the young trekkers aren’t all that likeable themselves, so there’s certainly something there, however small it may be.
The film attempts to tackle themes of morality as justification for the killings, but ultimately ends up becoming a slaughter-fest for the sake of it, and on that front it succeeds. Fans of the original Wrong Turn will come to see how the modern reboot can push the boundaries in the violence and horror aspects, and how it differs from the original, while newcomers will be looking for fresh ideas that haven’t already been done to death. Fresh ideas this film is all out of, but the violence and gore is brutal, and excellently produced, which should provide a common ground of enjoyment for both old, and potential new fans of the series.
Wrong Turn is a rare example of a horror film reboot that’s worthy enough for the time of its audience. There’s nothing new here, but it’s well-directed and well-cast and features a bit of depth to the story. There’s enough tension, blood, and guts to please most horror fans.
Fun Fact:
Not connected to any of the direct-to-video sequels (released between 2007 and 2014), and written by the creator and original screenwriter, Alan B. McElroy.
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