SPEAKER_03 0:04

Uh one time he fell out of a tree and almost died, but he lived.

SPEAKER_00 0:11

Greetings and salutations, and welcome to Hacker Slash. If you're joining us again, welcome back. You cutting wires with me, son? If this is your first time listening, welcome to the party. We are a horror movie review podcast dedicated to telling you whether a movie is a hack.

SPEAKER_02 0:26

A total joke. A waste of time.

SPEAKER_00 0:28

Or a slash.

SPEAKER_02 0:29

Totally killer. Unintended.

SPEAKER_00 0:30

We believe horror is for everyone, and as such, we're rating these movies with the perspective we've all gained from our varying walks of life and the flavors of fear we fancy most. My name is Chris, I'm your friendly neighborhood slasher enthusiast. This week I'm joined for a spooky scary skeleton crew by the Superfly Space Guy Mac.

SPEAKER_02 0:47

You're the one who's gonna need to take care.

SPEAKER_00 0:49

And the Screaming Queen Paris.

SPEAKER_02 0:50

Hey sweets.

SPEAKER_00 0:51

It's road trippin' season here at Hacker Slash, and as Ryan is out on her own road trip this week, I'm actually gearing up for one at the time of this recording. So, really, when you road trip, there's truly no better way to prepare than by watching a movie that explores the potential horrors that can befall you. But before we raise our own personal anxieties here, we have some follow-up.

SPEAKER_03 1:11

Y'all trippin'. We do have some follow-up, Chris. We recently reviewed a film called Jack Frost. Not to be confused with the Michael Keaton film, which is equally terrifying. Um, but you know, it didn't do too well with our team. We actually all said it was a piece of shit. And you know, it would follow that on Twitter and Instagram our friends would agree. However, we asked our friends, and shockingly enough, 31% of them actually gave this film a slash. Now that leaves the other 69% to give it a hack. Nice. It felt right. We have a comment from our friend Freya who said, The coffee scene, as Ryan said, is the best part of the film. That and Shannon Elizabeth grieving in her own special thirsty way. The antifreeze porridge seems more tempting than re-watching this weird little flick. Michael Keaton's Snowman Supremacy. We also have another comment from our friend Spencer who said, I think it could have been better if Jack just didn't talk once he turned into a snowman. That gruffy, annoying voice just didn't work in his snowman form. What a different film that would have been. Yeah, if it was just like a silent snowman, I don't know that it would have been as good. Who would have been making the puns, you know? And finally, our friend EC had some hot intel. He said, As someone from Colorado, I think this movie is based in Wyoming and not in my home state. I know we saw a plate saying Colorado, but Colorado is right next to Wyoming. So let's give it to Wyoming, along with the Chaneys. Also, this movie is a hack.

SPEAKER_00 2:32

The levels and depths he goes to to disown this movie fills me with such a delight. I feel like somewhere in there he has a level of petty, just like Marla in that film, that I would aspire to have.

SPEAKER_03 2:43

I respect that. Yeah, I feel like everybody's trying to disown this movie.

SPEAKER_00 2:46

Except for Rob. Rob was real sad that we hacked it.

SPEAKER_03 2:48

You know that 31% had to come from somewhere. Finally, I just want to give a shout out to one of our newest patrons, Brittany P. Britney P, thank you so much for your support. Um, I'm not sure what the P stands for. It might be Patron. I hope it is. Britney Patron, thank you so much for your support. And that's our follow-up.

SPEAKER_00 3:04

All right, well, this year we're going to see a new update to our franchise that started with some barbed wire and a traffic jam in the backwoods of West Virginia way back in 2003. Now, that 2003 film starring Eliza Dushku explored the fates of five friends and a stranger in search of help after a car accident on a back road. Unfortunately for them, the only help nearby was a group of three survivalist cannibals. This week, we're talking about Wrong Turn. Now, who has seen this before?

SPEAKER_02 3:29

I've never seen Wrong Turn before, but I have taken wrong turns before. At which point I usually just pull a UI and get back on the road.

SPEAKER_03 3:36

I'm actually surprised, Mac. Uh, I have seen this movie before. I saw it when it came out, so I was 12. This used to be like one of my favorite horror movies because at the time it was one of the most shocking things I'd ever seen, being 12. Uh, and my cousins and I, we loved this movie.

SPEAKER_00 3:52

Yeah, I was about 13 when this came out, Paris, and I feel like this is that height of horror that was a sweet spot in our lives for watching new releases, and Mac was, you know, busy being uh a Mac daddy, as it were.

SPEAKER_01 4:03

No.

SPEAKER_00 4:04

I saw this in theaters and I enjoyed it several times, specifically between 2003 and 2008. I feel like I just never watched it again, but I had fond enough memories that I was chill with it.

SPEAKER_01 4:13

Same.

SPEAKER_00 4:14

I've never seen any of the sequels. Over the years, it's something that I kind of like watched and knew that it was happening from afar and thought, well, there's a movie that was good the first time, and then getting worse by every entry, so it's a hard pass. Mac, given that you'd never seen it, what were you expecting?

SPEAKER_02 4:30

I was expecting the hillbillies from Cabin in the Woods to have their own film.

SPEAKER_00 4:34

Okay, I mean you you kind of no, you didn't really get that.

SPEAKER_02 4:37

Yeah, I mean, you know, they kind of have the same motivations at least.

SPEAKER_00 4:40

Now, Paris, obviously, being in a similar situation as me, I imagine it's probably been a while since you saw this. What were you feeling like watching this again after so many years?

SPEAKER_03 4:48

So, yeah, I definitely look back on this movie fondly. Um, it was, like you said, a sweet spot for horror in my life. I was like just at that age where it was like barely okay for me to start seeing ridiculous things like this. But yeah, while I was watching it, there was a lot of things that I just didn't really remember. Because, like you, I haven't watched it probably since 2008. Uh, I remembered like a few of the characters, obviously Eliza Dushko, that was the main thing I remembered. And then one of the antagonists I remembered uh very well as well. I have a little story about that that we'll go into a little bit later. It felt like watching it for the first time, honestly, because there was so much that I didn't remember.

SPEAKER_00 5:23

Oh, yeah. There's like a lot of context that I didn't pick up on that you like, you know, is there, but also you're an uninformed 13-year-old, so like what could you really possibly know?

SPEAKER_01 5:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 5:33

This time around, it's interesting because I started watching it alone and then I called my girlfriend because immediately in this movie, when it starts, you have people who are rock climbing, and I feel like an idiot, and I have an embarrassing confession. I have always wondered how the hell rock climbing works logistically. And I get it, people who are free solo, they just go up there and climb that shit, right? You got certain routes to take, all that, good for you. I watched a documentary, scary as hell, respect, I'm never gonna do it.

SPEAKER_04 6:00

Not doing it.

SPEAKER_00 6:01

But then these people, I was like, okay, so hold on a second. Do they have to hike their asses off all the way up to the top, set their shit up, drop it down, hike all the way back down, just to exhaust more energy to climb back up?

SPEAKER_02 6:15

Yeah, but they then they could say that they did it.

SPEAKER_00 6:17

Yeah, that's so much energy though. Like, you have to not only be strong enough to be able to climb that shit in the first place, you have to be energetic enough to do it three times essentially. And that's ridiculous to me. Yeah, I asked this question. I asked, like, what about the people who are doing this when it's not practical to hike to the top, drop it down? And then my girlfriend pointed out correctly, of course, that there was an entirely different method of rock climbing for that, and I felt like an idiot. But it was an educational experience.

SPEAKER_03 6:44

But I feel like that's also the scary method because that's the one that you see in all the crazy horror movies and the documentaries that are dramatic.

SPEAKER_00 6:51

Yeah, that's that's true. That's true. So that took up a lot of my my energy. But aside from that, I found myself being excited for having my own road trip soon. But Mac, how about you? What was this like watching it for the first time?

SPEAKER_02 7:03

It I don't know if it's exactly what I expected. It was kind of the milder sort of horror movie. It had enough to entertain me, not too much to gross me out or distract me, you know, if I had wanted to scroll Instagram. So watching it, you know, I it was kind of I was in the story, I knew what was going on, but I didn't feel like it was punishing or anything. I didn't feel like I had to sit there or I would miss out on a super important detail.

SPEAKER_00 7:27

That's a fair way to describe this. And I've been, I think, searching for a way to describe it for so long, ever since like, you know, I remembered oh, they're coming out with the new wrong turn movie. How do I feel about the original one? I remember liking it, but it's like a very specific type of horror movie. And in some ways, it's kind of more action-y the longer it goes on, similar to the thing as you mentioned before, Paris. I think what was really interesting is that I felt like I had a totally different experience this time around. And honestly, I was surprised that a a couple characters were more annoying than I recalled. And I don't know if that's something you can relate to, Paris, but I was kind of shocked that I would have continued to watch this so many times and suffer through that dialogue.

SPEAKER_03 8:10

Yeah, same. I absolutely feel that. You know how you'll watch movies from like the 1950s and people just have an entirely different way of talking?

SPEAKER_01 8:17

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 8:18

I feel like it's now been long enough since 2003 that you can look at this and be like, wow, nobody has conversations like this anymore, nobody says those things anymore. It's like it's like watching something from another time because yeah, I found so many of the characters just to be really annoying. Some of the characters that I think were supposed to be cool, I was like, what is you're a douche, what is this?

SPEAKER_00 8:38

Yeah, no, it was seriously, it was like, okay, fucking say you're getting married one more time, dude. Okay, say you gotta interview in Raleigh one more time. Like, we don't need the incessant reminders. I will say that I was actually disappointed in what lies beneath the surface of this movie. And I think I worked out in my mind that it feels like a car that's really pretty on the outside, and it's like attainable pretty, not luxury pretty. It's not like a masterpiece on the outside, right? And the interior is nice too. You know, you have Felajadushku, you have like this really interesting premise.

SPEAKER_03 9:07

Eliza Dushku's the interior.

SPEAKER_00 9:09

Yeah, the thing that like once you get into it, right? Because you have to, I think, buy into the concept of it, and you had to like think this car isn't as a good looking car to even want to sit inside it. Then when you sit inside it, you're like, oh snap, no, this is nice. Like, I expected this to maybe be kind of shitty on the inside. Like, there's something that's gotta be too good to be true, but Eliza Dushku makes it feel really nice. But then what you don't realize, because you're probably not a car person like Mac is everything under the hood is going to last not more than a couple thousand miles before it all falls apart. And this is a movie that it feels good, it looks good as you're watching it, it's entertaining, and then you realize it's not gonna age well because it prays and perpetuates some really negative stereotypes that are actually kind of shitty. It's kind of a shitty approach to to horror. I don't I don't know if anybody else had that had that vibe.

SPEAKER_03 9:55

I totally did. I feel like watching this in a post-Tucker and Dale versus Evil World is not the same.

SPEAKER_01 10:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:03

You know, I don't know if I had the same experience. I mean, it honestly didn't feel like early 2000s to me. It kind of felt more like a late 90s. I wouldn't say blockbuster, but like summer horror movie. I don't know, you you kind of feel like you know everyone that's in the cast, even though you don't know where they're from. You're like, I know those faces.

SPEAKER_04 10:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:23

Everything kind of seems recognizable, but it's you know, it's it's very it's like very vanilla, very kind of superficial. So I I think I can get with the with the the car analogy.

SPEAKER_00 10:32

Yeah, Jeremy Zisto from Clueless is in this, and that's uh that's about it as far as recognizability.

SPEAKER_03 10:37

And Eliza Dushku, of course, Missy from Bring It On. Right.

SPEAKER_00 10:41

Of course, but I figured you'd give me shit if I said her name again. I rem I do remember specifically, not ever being super scared by this movie, but thinking it was creepy. Specifically, one of the antagonists is real giggly, and it fucking is it's weird, man. It's like really fucking creepy.

SPEAKER_02 10:58

Yeah, one of the antagonists, I think one of the protagonists seems kind of giggly, even if they don't giggle too much.

SPEAKER_00 11:02

Oh, yeah. Well, you know.

SPEAKER_02 11:04

Yeah, this is this is like medium salsa. So I don't think there is too much to be scared of here. A little suspense, a little gore, but most things are set up in like pretty predictable ways, especially if this isn't your first horror radio.

SPEAKER_03 11:16

Okay, I will be the lone one here and say that I was scared still at a few points.

SPEAKER_02 11:21

Really?

SPEAKER_03 11:21

Uh there were specifically two jump scares that got me good, uh, because I just wasn't expecting them. Uh they kind of set me up in the perfect way. Uh, but the I specifically remember the antagonists being like the scariest part of this. Uh but this time around, I was kind of like, oh, I can see the makeup, I can see things that I didn't see as a child. Um so that they weren't as scary to me. Creepy still, yes. Jump scares still intact, but the the terror of these people was not as strong as it once was for me.

SPEAKER_00 11:54

That's totally fair. There's a particular scene that I enjoy in this movie, but only because it feels so tense and you can just feel the gravity of everything that's happening. I feel like it it makes you stay there and linger in it for a bit. I don't even know that it's a jum scare, but there is a a moment where you would panic on the inside because I feel like of how well it's sold with you know what happening with this antagonist happens, and then the realization of look of horror on the other character's face when they realize what's happening. I can't wait to talk about that later. It was a really good moment, but I will say this. We have now on this podcast, we've covered some movies with road trips, we've covered some movies with cannibals, we've covered a movie or a couple movies with people of the hills, and I will tell you that for some reason, even though I know this is like an amalgamation of just really generic elements, I have always referenced this as like, oh, this movie's like wrong turn. Like it still feels different. And I think even now, you know, it's probably like if I was watching it for the first time, I wouldn't feel as fondly about it, but this still has this very special place in my heart.

SPEAKER_02 13:00

So it's kind of like if there was like another fairly common Kleenex style tissue that you could refer to instead of Kleenex, you would you'd be like, oh, just grab a whatever when you need to blow your nose.

SPEAKER_00 13:11

Yeah, I think this is like the RC Cola to my Pepsi. And I like RC Cola.

SPEAKER_03 13:17

Honestly, I couldn't disagree more.

SPEAKER_00 13:20

I get it. I I get it. I know that this is a very weird feeling for me to have.

SPEAKER_03 13:25

Maybe because we've watched so many things similar to this recently, but I having the background of the original Hills Have Eyes, having just recently watched the remake of the Hills Have Eyes, uh, Last House on the Left, you know, seeing this, I was like, oh, this is literally just completely unoriginal. And I remember at the time I hadn't seen any of those things, and I was like, this is the most original thing I've ever seen. Uh but I was 12 and now I'm 30. Uh, so I can't give this really any originality points. I think like one specific factor of the antagonists kind of taps into something. Um, and I believe it they kind of develop that further in the later sequels. Yeah, overall, not too original for me now.

SPEAKER_00 14:07

Pay close heed to the fact that I never once said the word original in my statement. Right. It's it's, you know, it's got a special place in my heart.

SPEAKER_02 14:14

This movie is The Hills Have Chainsaws. Yes. Or more accurately, a shotgun, an axe, and a bow and arrow. It's you know what this movie is the Fellowship of the Things. It's like the early 2000s chewed up several horror movie ingredients and just spit them out into wrong turns.

SPEAKER_04 14:27

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 14:27

That's brilliant, actually, and I'm not mad at it. It kind of makes me like it more in a really weird way. Because let me tell you what, there's nothing I enjoy more in this moment right now, this week specifically, pretending that no other movie exists, than seeing Eliza Dushku fall on a tree branch with her arm spread out far enough to make it look like she's falling on the whole damn floor. Yeah, I'm I'm a fan of the woods. I'm a fan of horror. So horror movie in the woods, I'm down, I'm I'm cool, I'm there, I'm with it. But I will say that, you know, as as the events go on, I feel like this movie's paced pretty well, but the ending I was I was never bothered by it before, but I don't have a it doesn't leave a good taste in my mouth now. I think because I'm like looking at it real up close and my face was real close to the TV and not far away in a theater. I don't know what it is, but just the last moment that you're given after the credits start, I it kind of it kind of destroyed the experience.

SPEAKER_03 15:22

Once again, couldn't disagree more.

SPEAKER_00 15:24

Yeah, unsurprising.

SPEAKER_03 15:25

So for me, like the the regular ending, I was like, wow, this was such a dud. Like it felt so anticlimactic. And then you get that little bit of the epilogue after the credits roll, and I was like, oh, okay, let's at least they gave me something.

SPEAKER_02 15:38

See, I I think the ending was like it's pretty like it's standard, you know, it's kind of what you expect, and it has some closure, and I was okay with it. When you get, I feel like if you want this to be its own movie and then you're done with with it, you don't want any more wrong turns, you're gonna take right turns only. Um, just like end it, turn it off as soon as the credits start to roll. But I think if you're okay, like you want a little bit more, sure, like keep keep watching. I was very happy where it left off right before the credits rolled. And then when I realized there was another scene, I was like, ooh, what could this be? And then it happened, and I was like, nah, should have just ended earlier.

SPEAKER_00 16:12

Yeah. See, Paris, I'm not mad at the concept of it. Right? Like the sequence of events that happens, it's okay. I didn't like the way it was executed and the close-up that you get of one of the characters. I'm like, oh, see, now this is a little this is a little weird, man.

SPEAKER_03 16:27

I mean, let's dive into this deeper in the spoiler section when we can be completely transparent because I think you all are tripping balls.

SPEAKER_00 16:35

Let's go ahead and move things along, then an expedite thing, so we can get to the debate of whether or not Mac and I are tripping balls. Now, before we score this movie, Mac and Alexis' absence. How much death is in this movie?

SPEAKER_02 16:47

Well, I don't know how much death, but we had ten deaths. So I know how many we had.

SPEAKER_00 16:52

Oh, okay. Well, that's fair. It's a good quantity of death. But the real question is, were any of those deaths animals?

SPEAKER_03 16:57

You know, Chris, in a shocking turn of events this week, the animal report seems to be the only thing in this movie that isn't soiled. Save for a couple little critters that may or may not be dear to your heart. There's no scrolling around the issue. There's some carcasses. I don't think roadkill counts. Ryan can be the deciding factor when she gets back, but for me, roadkill doesn't count.

SPEAKER_00 17:17

All right, we'll file an appeal and uh contest it later. Let's go ahead and get into the scoring then. Wrong turn from 2003. Hackerslash.

SPEAKER_02 17:26

Alright, bear with me here. So if you're like me and you're okay eating McDonald's every now and then, then you know McDonald's in Virginia. It's pretty much the same as McDonald's in Georgia or Ohio or Florida or North Carolina. You know what to expect because it's all made consistently and with a recipe that you recognize and it doesn't offend you. This movie's like that. It's got ingredients that we all know, it's got enough suspense to not truly bore you, just enough core to spice things up, but not make you throw up. So, you know, I think it's mildly entertaining, vaguely familiar, and not too shoddy. It's actually a slash for me.

SPEAKER_03 18:01

I obviously look back on this movie very fondly. This is um actually like my my cousins and I, we used to play in the woods all the time, and after we watched this movie, we would like play wrong turn, which is a crazy thing to think about now.

SPEAKER_00 18:14

I can't wait to hear how you played that out later.

SPEAKER_03 18:17

Yeah, it was it was not great for one of my cousins specifically. I literally remember this being like one of my favorite horror movies, and then I watched it this time, and I was like, this script is like so basic, it's so like lacking in any kind of depth. Now that I've seen so many other things, I feel like it's completely unoriginal. Like some of the characters were truly insufferable, and I was like, please just die. But there was also like, you know, some things that I really enjoyed. I feel like the camera work was solid. Uh, there's one element that I'll talk about in the spoiler section that I referred to earlier that they may develop in the later sequels that I really enjoyed. But ultimately, like, I truly don't know where I lie on this one. Part of me wants to give it just like a nostalgia slash, because it's not so terrible. Like, I'm not saying never watch this movie, it's a piece of shit. It's just kind of blah.

SPEAKER_00 19:09

Is it better than the thing?

SPEAKER_03 19:10

Uh yeah, it's better than the thing. Okay, you know what? We'll just sure. I'm gonna give this probably my most mild slash I've ever given, partially influenced by nostalgia. It's like Max said, it's entertaining. Um, it's not horribly offensive, it's serviceable. It's a serviceable slash.

SPEAKER_00 19:27

I think I should have specified, is it better for you than the thing? before we get angry emails implying that we here at Hacker Slash think wrong turn is better than John Carpenter's 1982 Pillar of Horror Classic.

SPEAKER_04 19:41

I said what I said.

SPEAKER_00 19:43

And that's fine. That's you know, you gotta see you gotta add a little asterisk there. Paris, I do feel very similarly to you. It's when you're younger and you watch this for the first time, because it's so basic, it's hard to dislike. But when you have a more refined palate, right? It's kind of like when you grow up eating dino chicken chicken nuggets, you know? Just they're good, they're chicken nuggets, it's fine. However, when you grow up and learn what seasoning is and other delicious delicacies, you're not always gonna want dino chicken nuggets. In fact, you may have it once out of nostalgia, but it's not gonna be something you ever like crave and pick up regularly at the grocery store unless you have children. And this is one that you know I feel like I'm not gonna put it on again, maybe for a while. I think I want to skip the franchise, and I won't because of the podcast. We will eventually cover it, but I don't think I'll ever personally want to pursue the franchise, save for the new release that's coming out. But I think what really did it for me is we all grow as humans and we grow in our perspectives, and I wasn't wise to the harmful stereotypes of Appalachia, and I wasn't aware of any of that, right? It's just like this whole thing, like everybody makes jokes about hillbillies and inbreeding and all that stuff, but it's just not something that I ever was was read up on, experienced, seen, anything like that. And my girlfriend, she shared with me a number of documentaries and a number of videos about like a photographer who went out and met this family and specifically met like an inbred family. And it's just here's the thing, right? It pulls these punches in a way that it's not cool to exploit people in such a way. You know what I mean? And so that's where it really comes down to this movie for me. Now, speaking objectively, just like as a movie, right? Let's let's take any potential for stereotypes out of it. I too would give it a slash. I think it's fun. But I will say that when you watch this, I think you should take it as an opportunity to read more and to study more about some some things that are implied in this movie so that you can watch it with a different lens later. I think you know it's it's serviceable, it's a decent horror movie, but I think it's ripe for more conversation later, if that makes sense. sense.

SPEAKER_02 22:00

I mean that that's a good point to bring up. It's definitely something I didn't even consider while watching it because you just watch it knowing, okay, this is the shtick of the movie, but you don't think about it, you know, as as the people who are from that region would think about it.

SPEAKER_03 22:15

Yeah. I felt the same like the just the the Tucker and Dale of it all. I'm like, these are people. Maybe we don't invade their home.

SPEAKER_00 22:24

Maybe. But more on that later. We will have some content coming to Patreon that it kind of explores this whole subject as a whole. But for now, wrong term 2003, despite its early 2000s flaws, is a universal slash.

SPEAKER_03 22:37

Huh? We're gonna look back on this at the end of the year like, what happened?

SPEAKER_00 22:42

Maybe, maybe when Ryan gives her a vote, things will change. But for now, let us know what you think. You can find this movie streaming online. It is available for rent. Check it out, then join us in the second half so we can dive deeper into this nonsense.

SPEAKER_02 22:56

See you in a bit are you tired of making wrong turns? Is your victim juking you around every corner? Use slays to avoid police and easily find parking for discarded vehicles. Identify traffic jams so you can find the fastest back road routes. Socially connect with other slaysers to mark the best places for barbed wire traps, hiding spots, burial mounds, and watchtowers. Be the end of their days with slays because friends who slay together stay together.

SPEAKER_00 23:33

Welcome back folks you are now entering the spoiler zone for wrong turn and honestly we may have taken a few wrong turns ourselves somewhere along the way because for right now this one is a universal slash. We'll see how long it lasts. Now we have a lot to get to here but before we get into the specifics of our ratings we have to do our best in the gore lover's absence to assess the gore in this movie and there is some of it. Mac what's our gore score?

SPEAKER_02 23:55

Yeah so I kind of refer to this early as being like a medium or maybe even a mild salsa but it is chunky salsa. You know we have a variety of kills here. We've got axe deaths, throat cuts, barbed wire, arrow shots, half head decapitations, explosions overall not a bad mix for hillbillies. So it's it's medium level gore uh for a medium level movie. That feels right.

SPEAKER_00 24:21

Yeah yeah some of it's real good and then some of it's just like okay that was quick and I'm glad I didn't have to suffer through that. I think we all did have the consensus though that if Lexus was here it'd be low for her personally. It'd be non-existent for her. It'd be what the fuck I thought this was a horror movie for her.

SPEAKER_02 24:37

Yeah some of the gore kind of seemed like trimmed down to me maybe in editing or something. It seemed like it had the potential for more but some of the stuff we get on screen does have a good bit of gore to it. Like you do get to see the decapitation for instance and I think that was a pretty satisfying you know moment of gore because we get to see that like body drop all the way down to the ground. Now it wasn't my favorite kill but I think it was visually surprising for me because I felt like while watching the rest of the movie you know we get these missed opportunities for tons of blood and tons of body parts. So I felt like okay like that's pretty that's pretty good compared to the rest.

SPEAKER_00 25:15

You know it's interesting you said the decapitation and my mind immediately went to the police officer getting actually decapitated and beheaded on the table after he's dead but no you were talking about what was actually my favorite kill which was Carly because oh my gosh she was so fucking annoying all the way up until that point. So annoying truly unbearable totally fine before her boyfriend dies. Uh after that couldn't stand her. Let me tell you they do a lot of shit with her eyes and we'll get to this later in the visuals with CGI but that was the one kill I've never forgotten from this movie.

SPEAKER_03 25:50

That's crazy. I totally forgot that kill 100% did not remember it whatsoever. On a scale of Peris to Chris are you a Mac you'd think it would be the one I would remember because it it seems memorable. I can't think of another movie that's had a a kill like that.

SPEAKER_02 26:06

And it was pretty quick too like sometimes they'll like drag those out so you really have to like suffer through it with the the you know with the character or whatever but it was like no boom like chopped in the head body falls to the ground.

SPEAKER_00 26:17

Truly that was Alan B. McElroy who also was the writer of Halloween four uh knowing that we had already suffered through enough with her. So just get it over with.

SPEAKER_03 26:27

Honestly if we're ever in a situation like this after the first time you say you're done, I'm leaving you. You're done. 100% we're not stopping to console you we're gonna keep it pushing and you can figure it out.

SPEAKER_00 26:39

Yeah and if you dare to maniacally fucking laugh at some point uh like what a trap gets off that no you're fucking dead you're dead to me I'm leaving you behind Alexis would be the one to laugh.

SPEAKER_02 26:50

Maybe at least we know that we could put Alexis in like one of those little child backpack carriers you know just kind of hoof her along for the ride.

SPEAKER_00 26:57

Yeah okay well she's gonna go on your broad shoulders not mine.

SPEAKER_02 27:01

Well speaking of broad shoulders my favorite kill was the uh the good old uh law enforcement officer whatever he actually was with you know state trooper ranger whatever because you just like I don't know you didn't expect it at least I didn't expect it I expected the the cop to just not believe him and drive off but when he was like like what murders and then boom arrow in the eye like dead instantly completely useless to the characters and I it caught me off guard. So I actually actually like that one a lot.

SPEAKER_03 27:30

Nice I was expecting the cop to be in on it because I feel like the cop's always in on it when it's like the more rural these things are the more likely the cop is to be in on it you know yeah it's because you've seen the Texas chainsaw massacre. Is that it? I can't remember what I'm thinking of but you're probably right. That is it uh so for me my favorite kill was initially Francine because just like getting strangled and choked with barbed wire in the mouth just seems like a real rough way to go. Uh and then they like did her even dirtier later on when they brought her back to the house. Um but I think I'm actually gonna give it to Scott because I really liked the way it was like subtle kind of the level of restraint that they they applied to that kill I think was really satisfying because you you know what's gonna happen. You see Sawtooth ready the bow and arrow and he's definitely going to shoot our our friend Scott in the back. But then you see it from the car's perspective and you just get the you just hear like a t and it's like so quiet and you just kind of see him stop and you're like oh and then you hear another and it's like oh and then he there's they're just like why is he stopping? Why is it and then he just collapses to the ground three arrows in his back because he's dead as hell.

SPEAKER_00 28:37

I do feel bad for Scott and let me be clear I find him exceptionally annoying. I found him more annoying than I found Carly in the beginning in the you know the front half of the movie.

SPEAKER_04 28:48

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 28:48

But to think he was so close to being rescued and then they could have just continued to drive without worry and really it I think that movie in that moment reminded me so much of what we've been playing with Dead by Daylight where it's like look the more you have the longer you can stick around but as soon as one's done the odds are against you.

SPEAKER_02 29:09

That's true. It's interesting that you passed up on Fran's death. You know this is one of those that if you're watching the theatrical cut does seem really kind of cut down and and that's also because it was like they were originally in a show more where the the barbed wire like goes into her mouth and cuts in a bit and they like pick her up using the barbed wire. Oh yeah instead you get you st you get the little jump scare you get like a little bit but you don't get the full amount of gore that it could have been which is really cool.

SPEAKER_03 29:39

Wait that makes so much sense because later when you see her body you can see that barbed wire was really dug in there.

SPEAKER_00 29:44

Oh for sure and I actually didn't remember seeing as much when I saw it this time around I was like oh I thought they'd just kind of take her quick off screen but they actually have quite a few flashes of what's happening they just don't linger on it very much. The viciousness of that I mean I've only been near barbed wire when it's much higher than I but it still looked exceptionally frightening.

SPEAKER_02 30:05

Yeah that's a hateful thing to do. I was surprised when we got to the actual like cannibal part of people on the table or on the slab or whatever it was they were using, you know, to chop them up for dinner because they showed a lot like they showed the fully mangled corpse that they were chopping up for food later. And that was surprising. It reminded me of the terminus section of The Walking Dead um where you know I don't want to spoil it for anybody but there's cannibals involved so they show a lot on screen. And this that really surprised me here when we get to that point and there's like body leg cut off tons of blood tons of gore um I'm okay with us not having like seen the actual like chopping happen in person point of view whatever because I feel like it still has enough of an effect.

SPEAKER_03 30:49

I totally agree Mac I feel like a lot of the gore in this movie comes as sort of like an an ambient thing as opposed to a direct uh attack I mean you get plenty of that as well but there's a lot of like background gore like when they decide to fully invade a stranger's home and don't take anything as a a red flag as they're looking through like jars of teeth and like currently boiling pot of human remains soup. Like clearly they're not far.

SPEAKER_00 31:18

Yeah have you not have a nice Haley stew and what trips me up is that despite all this first off they enter the home and that's already like a big fucking nope.

SPEAKER_03 31:28

It's actually illegal.

SPEAKER_00 31:29

They then rummage through the home being total assholes the entire time like let's pretend for a second these weren't cannibals you're just being assholes. Third it takes the doctor to open the fridge and find organs and how convenient that he is able to flex his knowledge again. I can look at this for one second and know exactly which organ is this shit we gotta get out of here. Yeah it's it's ridiculous.

SPEAKER_02 31:54

They should have realized when they saw it like you know this is a set of keys that obviously like doesn't match the decor from the rest of the house. Something is a foot.

SPEAKER_00 32:02

Yeah and there is a foot over there in the corner.

SPEAKER_03 32:04

Holy shit people are being chopped up Yeah Chris you mentioned this or somebody mentioned this on a an episode way back but this movie takes full advantage of the fact that nobody watching it can smell anything. Yes. Because there's no way you'd set foot in there and not just be gagging and vomiting at the smell of all of that like rotted flesh.

SPEAKER_00 32:23

Yeah no it's like these assholes roll up in here like oh I guess this is just what por smells like oh my god. Serious because like they don't stop for a second to have boundaries right like they just assert themselves like yeah they have every right to pop in here. They have every right to rummage and oh I've never been in a place like this so this must be what it smells like on the regular no man it's rotting flesh.

SPEAKER_02 32:44

You gotta be appreciative in moments like this that now Verizon has like such wide 4G coverage in rural areas.

SPEAKER_00 32:52

Oh you mean Verizon 5G?

SPEAKER_02 32:53

Almost I don't know if we're there yet with the times Mac.

SPEAKER_00 32:56

Haven't you heard every other ad in America? Right right you know for as much shit as I'm giving it right now what happens immediately after that you know with the perpetrators coming back and dragging Francine's body in that entire section from the time they hide to the time they escape and decide to run uphill uh that is actually my favorite scene of the movie because of all the tension.

SPEAKER_03 33:18

I love that you enjoyed that Chris because you hated it. It was hard for me. That was the part where I had to really just throw my disbelief right out the window.

SPEAKER_00 33:26

Yeah I I think it's because I found a lot of humor there. Like specifically when all these guys are suddenly taking a nap because these survivalists obviously they're like we only need one leg today boys we already got those other two we're just gonna leave the rest of this on the table. Chris goes to climb out but then fucking Jesse just grabs him and he's like chill out like it's just like these weird hand gestures he makes it I could imagine being in a situation like this like let's say if Alexis were there and I'd be terrified every second of what she would do. She's small so I don't think she'd knock into things but I would be concerned that she'd be so concerned for me that it'd be stressful. And I think the stress of that scene makes it really entertaining. Not like from a fear factor but like a tension and I'm I'm fully am entertained by this moment.

SPEAKER_02 34:14

No I wouldn't be cutting my hand on that door spring just to let you guys know it's it's not gonna happen.

SPEAKER_00 34:18

Well you're not tall enough.

SPEAKER_02 34:19

No that's true.

SPEAKER_03 34:20

That's true.

SPEAKER_00 34:21

You're plenty tall don't worry I'm five three and a half so what do I know?

SPEAKER_03 34:25

As the tall one here I also will not be doing that. Yeah no one no one's surprised by that I will actually not have entered that building and I'm not gonna take a nap and wait for them to fall asleep. I they were in there for way too long and also Scott and Carly were just in the other room hoping they never opened the bathroom door.

SPEAKER_00 34:43

Was that the bathroom?

SPEAKER_02 34:44

Because the whole place was the bathroom according to Scott oh god the level of disrespect honestly you gotta wonder well like if they're eating human leg for for lunch like how long does it take for that to hit their tummy ew.

SPEAKER_03 35:00

There was already a gross toilet shot.

SPEAKER_00 35:02

They have like you know organs and intestines like you know made of fucking iron at this point. You've become accustomed to that you should have to not eat anyone sick I guess. I don't know the logistics of cannibalism I'm sorry.

SPEAKER_02 35:12

Yeah it affects their brains I know that much. Kuru Jamie Lee Curtis had that once in season two of Scream Queens.

SPEAKER_00 35:19

Oh so not Jamie Lee Curtis but just a picture of the character.

SPEAKER_03 35:23

Yeah Diamant um but truly can the human stomach dissolve and digest a human stomach I mean I imagine you're not eating the whole human stomach right all at once you're just like chopping it up in little bits and I don't know I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 35:37

Because the stomach's hollow I can't imagine it's that I know that the human stomach can't handle that much blood.

SPEAKER_02 35:42

So it's not like they could just like consume the blood they would have to throw up.

SPEAKER_00 35:46

There's some strainers around there.

SPEAKER_02 35:48

A colander yeah there you go that's the word speaking of straining my favorite scene was far earlier in the film and it's actually the vehicle collision for just a weird reason like it really it had the nostalgia that Paris was talking about because I remember driving around obviously when you had CD players in your car and you actually played CDs like on a normal basis. Even back then I knew that if you drop it on the ground or if it falls you just let it sit there and you pop a different CD in and you just keep your eyes on the road. But they made you think that this was going to happen like 20 times before it did. That's true. There were a lot of car accident fakeouts.

SPEAKER_00 36:23

Yeah the CD didn't get them but that dead deer sure did multipurpose deer.

SPEAKER_03 36:27

Should have served as a warning.

SPEAKER_00 36:28

That's just for the audience.

SPEAKER_03 36:30

I have to say that my favorite scene um was a scene that I didn't remember at all watching this again. And it's sort of the the climax where they're in the trees uh having this like showdown because you kind of get a little bit of like hijinx as well as like the threat of danger. We have Chris and he's sort of like pulling back this tree branch and I'm like what is he doing? What is this like cartoon hijinx? Um and then you have like Eliza Dushku like luring the um antagonist killer have to go into a tangent about that in a moment. And then he just like elastic smacks the tree branch releases it like a slingshot and destroys them right off the trees. For me that scene was really enjoyable but it was also very long. I kept thinking it was going to end and it didn't so I'm gonna give my favorite scene to like the first half of that but the second half I was like okay let's let's keep it pushing because how how far up in the in the trees are we? How are we finding so many places to kind of just run around in the trees?

SPEAKER_00 37:32

Yeah they had great control of their balance it's like I'm sorry do all these victims happen to be trapeze artists?

SPEAKER_03 37:40

Yeah exactly I was like well how are we actually doing all of this drama up in the tree branches right now?

SPEAKER_00 37:46

It truly is when he gets up on the tree with her and surprises her and she falls you can tell by her arms it looks like she just straight up fell on the floor. It really did like Eliza in that moment you're not selling the tree girl you sold it when you fell and you like you know spun around. Thankfully you're able to hold on but you're not convincing us on the rest of it.

SPEAKER_02 38:06

Honestly shout out to that stunt double because that was a good stunt. Those jumps were were pretty darn impressive. I wouldn't have been able to make it I would have I would make like one foot out horizontally and then just straight down.

SPEAKER_03 38:15

Oh truly Mac when they were all jumping out of the Burning Watchtower I was like okay I would just nosedive head first so that I just die on impact because I'm not trying to land in the trees and still be alive. I want this to be done.

SPEAKER_00 38:27

Harris I'm actually so glad that you mentioned the stun doubles Elijah Dushku did most of her stunts in this movie.

SPEAKER_03 38:33

Oh my god I wanted that to be true so badly that I was actually looking I was like is that Eliza in that scene? Is that her?

SPEAKER_00 38:38

Yeah and there are actually a number of points in which the casting crew went through hell and so many people were injured in this movie. Like for real for real injured.

SPEAKER_02 38:47

I believe that I I also believe that I'm curious if anyone got injured on the rock climbing scene. I'm sure somebody at least busted a knee.

SPEAKER_00 38:54

Here's what we got right I'm just gonna run through this real quickly Elijah Dushku did set the guy who plays Three Finger on fire during one of the last scenes. Oh he did get set on fire. Desmond Harrington who plays Chris when they're running from the cabin he actually did break his right ankle on the opposite side of his leg that was shot in the movie so that was difficult to pull off. And the woman who plays Carly dislocated her shoulder when she was performing the fall through the trees. Oh no and then on top of that many people were covered in poison ivy because someone put their chairs next to what they thought were just like plants uh and no it was poison ivy and they all got rashes very painful experience wrong turn yeah that sounds like a loose production they took a wrong turn in accepting that contract early 2000s this is the point where everybody just learns a lesson in their career and moves on.

SPEAKER_03 39:45

Yeah exactly but wait speaking of Chris and his actual real life broken ankle what one scene that like really made me laugh is when after Chris gets shot in the leg and then they run about a mile or what feels like a mile and then he just kind of like collapses onto the ground Eliza Dushku literally turns to him and says what's up I was like I wonder what could it be and he's just like just resting you know we should rest uh NBD. Like they're running for their lives on his like bullet wounded leg and then he just falls over and she's like hey what's up something's bothering you everything okay yeah it's funny you have this like really petty moment there of checking in on each other.

SPEAKER_00 40:23

My girlfriend watched this with me after I you know harassed her with logistical questions about rock climbing and she was like it bothers me that Eliza Dushku's character is made out to be super outdoorsy and yet they take off with not even a water bottle. I was like wait no because they did right like if she got together a backpack and threw it at Chris and then he's like oh yeah you know I can carry that you just had the whole car accident thing and then it just is never seen again. It's truly like nah like it is it's not with them when they get to the cabin it's not with them. I mean maybe he's holding it after uh Carly has her weird awkward moment about talking about receiving orgasms in front of this stranger and her best friend but that backpack just disappears and you they have to have been severely dehydrated.

SPEAKER_03 41:11

Okay to be honest if you had thrown me that backpack it would have just been left at the car and you'd be like Paris where's that bag?

SPEAKER_00 41:17

Our water was in it I'd be like oh you really wanted me to carry that well first we know not to give it to you but second they they threw it at him as they were walking away. So it's not like hey hold on to this we'll leave about 30 minutes. Make sure you bring it it's literally hey you're the mule and they start walking I'm like where the fuck did this bag go? I'd never noticed it before and of course my especially observant Maddie just pointed it right out and I was like well fuck this movie's ruined.

SPEAKER_02 41:43

So now I know on a road trip that I need to carry the backpack and the child like chest carrier for Alexis.

SPEAKER_00 41:50

Well you are the most equipped to be a father so I am the mule. You're gonna be taking care of all of us.

SPEAKER_02 41:56

Oh god I'm gonna I'm gonna be you know I'm gonna be the one telling everyone to drink a sip of water before we head out don't drink all of it save some for later.

SPEAKER_00 42:03

Harris you're talking about the acrobatics in the treetops and I know earlier you mentioned that the some of the cinematography was solid what about this movie visually stood out to you?

SPEAKER_03 42:12

It's gonna be uh the lighting in that tree scene for one uh I thought that the way that that was done was really beautiful just the light coming through those branches. Um towards the end it got a little too bright and I was like oh this is very clearly a set uh there's no no mistaking this for actual treetop shenanigans but I'd also love to give a couple like worse visuals one of them being Francine's classic 2000s pencil thin eyebrows yep that feels right and then another one being in the when they're all in the house like hiding the shot where they kind of like zoom into the keyhole and then you see someone's eye on the other side.

SPEAKER_00 42:51

Carly's eye.

SPEAKER_03 42:52

Is it Carly? Yeah it was so like CGI'd and like so cheesy that I was like oh this is this isn't an effect that aged well I bet at the time they were like this is so cool but now it's like people are gonna lose their shit.

SPEAKER_00 43:05

Yeah no it's the CGI in this movie and there's very little of it but it was so bad. Yeah the arrow going through the cop's eye I can forgive right it's sudden it's blood but what truly fucked me up was the keyhole eyeball and then the same thing again when she gets the the axe to the jawline and then it's just like real close up on her eye and then pulls back and tilts down and it's like what the fuck is your obsession like the girl has brown eyes they're not it's not like you're getting lost in some really special color or something where you're like wow we really gotta sell this chick's features right like no it's not it's just in fact you made her eyes lighter in the CGI. You made them look like honey colored that's not even her eyes.

SPEAKER_03 43:48

I didn't notice that whatsoever to be honest.

SPEAKER_00 43:51

Brown ass eyes I'm telling I love brown eyes don't get me wrong. I do too I think if you are able to look into someone with brown eyes and fall in love with the depths of mystery in their eyes Eyes, it's really special.

SPEAKER_04 44:01

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_00 44:02

However, her eyes were just like they're not this honey color in the CGI. It is just it feels so disjointed. I didn't like it then and I don't like it now.

SPEAKER_03 44:10

I do also want to give mention to another thing that I really liked about it, the visuals was the POV camera work that they do all throughout the beginning before we kind of see the antagonists. Because it really gives you that feeling of like being like you know that our characters are being watched in the woods.

SPEAKER_01 44:27

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 44:28

Because everything is like from the bushes or like from the trees. And you you I think the it did a really good job of giving you the presence of the antagonists without introducing them yet. You still felt that they were there, they're in the entire movie.

SPEAKER_00 44:40

Yeah, it's uh it's a really good trick to pull from like Friday the 13th. Friday the 13th, more specifically. I know like obviously he rips a lot from Halloween, but later in the franchise, they always do things from Jason's perspective for a while because he's always lurking. But in this movie, they do they do it very well. That's absolutely accurate. But I also really love the sweeping aerial shots that we get of just like West Virginia and just being able to see like that watchtower, this vast expanse of just nothingness. It's beautiful and terrifying at the same time.

SPEAKER_02 45:10

They did a good job with with the with the way they handled the cameras in the movie. I mean, for for sure, and the and the lighting. You know, I mean, hey, having scenes set at night in a forest and being able to see things is kind of useful for a deranged tailbilling movie, just saying, Thank goodness they had plenty of lighting, even if though sometimes it was a little bit too much. I'm I'm kind of happy they did that. Um but I mean, camera work-wise, when they were showing us our antagonists without showing us their faces, I thought that was more effective than having the shots where we got to see them like head to toe. Because head to toe, they kind of look silly. And when we got to see them like shoulder to toe, I think that was way better, especially from like a kind of a to the side kind of viewpoint. I do also have to appreciate something they didn't do, which was use a color grading that was like everything is greenish or everything is tannish. You know, it's that's annoying when they do that, and so thank goodness they didn't do that here.

SPEAKER_00 46:03

Very true. Staple of early 2000s, and they could have done it here, right? You're surrounded by a lot of green, and they still white balance correctly. Thank you. You are all my heroes.

SPEAKER_02 46:13

This must have been before the big rush to do super duper gritty on every horror movie in the mid-2000s, because they didn't have that like layer of like Photoshop noise that all the rest of them do either, you know? Yeah, yeah. Like we have to make this seem gritty. No, they didn't do that. Good good choice.

SPEAKER_03 46:29

I think what you're saying, Mac, about the the antagonists being obscured for the better is something I totally agree with because once you kind of see them in like a full-body shot, you really can't help but think, like, oh, these are human beings that probably haven't had the best go at life. Uh, and that's when I started to kind of sympathize with them and be like, this is not the best thing for this group of people. Uh, like Chris was saying, like the the stereotypes. But I will say, I feel like of all the characters besides Eliza Dushku, I think the antagonists were some of my faves.

SPEAKER_00 47:06

Yeah, that's fair. I mean, they're they're efficient, they're good at what they do.

SPEAKER_03 47:10

And then one thing that I was referring to earlier that they expound upon later in the sequels is the way that they communicate in the woods. And it's through like bird calls and like all these sounds that if you don't know you're being stalked, you would not really notice at all. And I'm not sure if you guys noticed.

SPEAKER_00 47:30

Oh, that's fucking terrifying. Didn't even pick up on that.

SPEAKER_03 47:32

Oh.

SPEAKER_00 47:33

I mean, like I picked up on the giggling and like the the cheering.

SPEAKER_03 47:36

Yeah, the giggling and all of that, that's that's when they're like they've revealed themselves to you. Um, but literally so many of the forest scenes, you just hear like a like a bird call in the background, and if you're not paying attention, you're like, oh, that's what that's just a random bird noise that they put in. But it's actually one of the uh killers uh trying to signal to the rest of the squad that, hey, they're coming through this way.

SPEAKER_00 47:56

Now I want to watch go back and watch this movie.

SPEAKER_03 47:59

Yes, you should totally re-watch this movie and listen for all of the like woodland sounds that they used to communicate. And that leads me into the story I wanted to share with you about my cousins.

SPEAKER_00 48:09

Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_03 48:10

I spent a notable portion of my young childhood uh living with some of my cousins who had they lived on like the top of a really tall hill, and at the bottom of the hill was just the woods. And we would always play in the woods. It was just like that's what we would do in our free time. This was like before video games were easily accessible. Um, and one of my cousins, Cody, he was so good at climbing trees. He was the youngest one, and he would just like climb trees and he'd be like literally like jumping from tree to tree, and for the most part, he was fine. Uh, one time he fell out of a tree and almost died, but he lived. But after we saw a wrong turn, we literally just called him Three Finger for like two years after that. And anytime he would climb up into the trees, he would start making like the giggling sounds and like the squealing noises.

SPEAKER_00 48:55

Was he really good at it? Like, did it sound on par?

SPEAKER_03 48:58

Yeah, this is actually my same cousin who then went on to be a scare actor. So he he was like committed to the role when he would do it. It was very, it was very scary, it was very creepy, and then we always used to tease him for it too.

SPEAKER_02 49:08

I mean, that's pretty cruel of you as children if he like wasn't into it, but the fact that he got into it, you know, hey, that's cool. All of you guys enjoyed it. You had a good time. Yeah, he leaned into it.

SPEAKER_00 49:18

And then a scare actor was born.

SPEAKER_02 49:20

Exactly, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 49:21

Really, you set his career path, it's great. You discover your love and your passion early on in life.

SPEAKER_03 49:28

But as a result, the moment I saw Three Finger enter the screen, I was like, Oh, that's Cody, that's my cousin. And then I had to text my cousin. I was like, hey, did we do this as children? And they were like, Oh yeah, we definitely did that. And I was like, Oh, okay. But now I can't really be afraid of that character anymore because I'm like, oh, I'm related to him.

SPEAKER_01 49:44

Oh, I know him. He's people. Yes, he's my people.

SPEAKER_02 49:46

So there's I think some some admirable parts of this movie, but I I think my least favorite part was like the backstories for the supporting characters. You mentioned this a little bit earlier, Chris. I mean, it just could have saved a ton of time and sped up the pace, even though the pace was okay. But if we didn't have to see Evan, Francine, Scott, and Carly reading their lines, um, that would have been, I think, an improvement. The whole like hooking up in a West Virginia Forest thing, okay, we get it. You're gonna get got first. That's cool. Why even add the dialogue? We don't even need it.

SPEAKER_00 50:19

Yeah. Evan in his very early 2000s, clear sunglasses that serve no purpose.

SPEAKER_03 50:24

That was a look.

SPEAKER_02 50:25

Yeah, and then the of course the hourly engagement reminders. It's like when you're writing a paper and you need to meet a word requirement, I guess, like a word count, and you're just adding filler words. That's kind of what the dialogue was in many parts.

SPEAKER_00 50:39

Yeah. It was like, oh, I gotta be in Raleigh by seven. Well, you better get a move on then. You're you fucking wrecked your car, regardless of whether or not you find help. You're not getting to Raleigh by seven, dude. You're in West Virginia.

SPEAKER_03 50:51

I totally agree. I feel like the script was so basic and so bad that it was almost unnecessary. Like, nobody said anything of value or consequence in the entire movie. And I didn't even realize it until Eliza Dushku gave like the closest thing that could be deemed as like a monologue where she talks about like how great her friends are, because when her boyfriend dumped her, they planned this trip right away. And I was like, wow, they really spent no time on this script, and nobody really tried to act at all in this, did they?

SPEAKER_00 51:19

Yeah, but I'm gonna say something that's pretty lame. I've always admired the idea of like having a group of friends that would support you like that. And obviously, not like fucking, let's pack up and go out into West Virginia and get lost somewhere, right? But I liked the idea of a group of friends who were there to be supportive versus hey, let's go find where they grow weed. Or let's, you know, just stop and we're gonna go to a football game, but let's pull off uh and just camp here for the night, you know? People who have no fucking reason to really be together or be out going somewhere and it's just ridiculous. These were good people. And I think that's one of the better things. They don't sell it well in the script, but the idea is there, and and I value that idea.

SPEAKER_02 51:59

I think there's so many opportunities for that kind of setup for future horror movies, considering the age that we're in. I mean, think of like all the great friend groups that could happen these days, and how many people would be like, you know what? Let's go get this Airbnb yurt in Raleigh of all places and go to a couple breweries and have a good time. Like, that's a that's a great setup for for a horror movie.

SPEAKER_00 52:20

Yeah, I think I think that's one of the most defining things about this movie is that there's so much potential and it gets squandered in so many different places. Like the seeds of intent are there and it's fine. I think if they had left out this entire concept of these three guys being inbred cannibals, just make them cannibals, make them survivalists, whatever. But to set that up, it just vilifies people who don't have access to resources and means. And this is something that I didn't even quite piece together, and it took a lot of like reflection and like talking about this movie with my girlfriend and just like really like digging into it, and it's like this whole shittily assembled attempt at a comment on class because they set this movie up, and you have the doctor who's in a rush to be somewhere, and he goes to talk to the trucker, and the trucker's just an average Joe, and he's about to get be a smart ass to him. And Chris is painted to be someone who is probably not a bad human, but he's just very self-involved and you know, very unaware of what where he is and what he's seeing.

SPEAKER_03 53:28

And dripping in privilege.

SPEAKER_00 53:30

Exactly, and barging it to someone else's house, right? But the problem is they go to such an extreme of vilifying the inbred cannibals that these people no longer seem bad, right? Like you're rooting for the heroes again, like you you empathize with them, you sympathize with them, and you just become afraid of them, of of the cannibals. And I think where it draws a line for me, there's a quote in this movie where Scott says, economically deprived places are like a breeding ground for apocalyptic visionaries. And bro, it's just shitty. You know what I mean? Like early 2000s, I get it, whatever. But I would hope now, if you're watching this for the first time, that you can listen to a line of dialogue like that and then consider people like the Whitakers. I'm gonna drop a link in the show notes, and this is that video that I was mentioning earlier of a photographer who actually went and visited this family, and he makes a financial donation every time he goes, but it's just heart-wrenching to see conditions that human beings in our country have to live in, right? And it's just I wouldn't be cool with a horror movie that perpetuates negative stereotypes about my culture or my neighborhood or anything like that. And I don't think it should be okay for us to sit and make jokes and pull punches at the expense of people who don't have the means or the access to resources to better themselves, and that's shitty. That is the worst part of this movie.

SPEAKER_02 54:50

And now we said it. But it it is true though, because I mean, you're talking about an area of the country that relied on one industry for so long, and then that industry suddenly disappeared, and now it's like, what can they do? Well, they could have done a lot more had they had the support that they needed. You know, we demanded you know, the coal for however long, and now we're just like, never mind, we don't need it anymore. We don't want it anymore. Good luck on your own, and kind of like doomed an entire state to just figure things out on their own. Good luck. And it's so it is it is kind of frustrating when you think about like the people who lived in these areas were always down to like work hard and do what needs to be done, even before the coal industry was all about like survival, you know, they were able to live off the land, and then these days I don't know even if that's possible for people in that kind of a situation. It it it is kind of classist warfare, the movie.

SPEAKER_00 55:43

Yeah, and here's the thing, right? Like, this is wrong turn. I don't think anyone's gonna think real hard about this movie by any means, but I think one of the things that we talk about in the show is that it horror is for everyone, and I truly mean it is for everyone, and and these movies can be a very inclusive experience, and if nothing more, right? Like Wrong Turn was written and produced right in the early 2000s, right? It is in a time capsule of the where our society and our culture was. What can change though is the way you examine things and the things that you take away from movies like this. You can still enjoy it. This movie has some fun kills, it's a good time in a lot of places, but there are definitely things that you can pick up on it and see, wow, this is where we were. What can we do differently moving forward?

SPEAKER_03 56:31

The thing that's super interesting is I feel like the new release of Wrong Turn, the sort of revival that we're gonna watch soon, it from the trailer seems like they're kind of doing the same thing. Sure, it's from like a different, it's a different take, but it still feels like it has like that that core of classism. So I'm really interested to see how it's interpreted this time around.

SPEAKER_00 56:53

Yeah, we'll see. We'll see. It opens up for one night, January 29th. And then I believe it's supposed to be streaming later on. So we're gonna see how we can fit it into our schedule and be safe considering COVID. But rest assured we will revisit this important point in the next one. I will say, for as unceremonious as Francine's death is, she had a very endearing moment that I particularly enjoyed, and I wouldn't have minded seeing more of her. And she says, Now get them trousers off, boy, don't be a shishy. She just seems like a fun person.

SPEAKER_02 57:25

I I do have a comment on some of the characters though. So we get these two leads, and you know, we get one man and one woman, and they're both like these strong-willed characters, apparently. But I I I did find it interesting that they kind of set them up to be like a romantic coupling that never came to fruition, and I'm happy it didn't.

SPEAKER_00 57:45

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 57:46

I thought, you know, you see this kind of thing go down, you're like, oh god, here we go. They're gonna kiss under the waterfall for literally no reason at all. Uh and they didn't, and I liked that. Um, but what I didn't like is that they both lived. I really needed one of them to die. The two of them driving off together, I was like, no, what kind of ending is this? You can't both live. And then what do you what are you talking about in the car right now?

SPEAKER_00 58:07

Yeah, it's interesting to me that some people who go through things like this can be bonded together, and sometimes they bond together in inappropriate ways. You know, like they're just like, oh, we survived this together. We made it through this together. We should spend the rest of our lives together, and you can just imagine like fizzling out after like three dates, realizing you have nothing in common except for this dramatic experience.

SPEAKER_02 58:27

I had a feeling while watching them that perhaps they're not interested in each other like that. And that's probably a good thing. Do you think Eliza Dushku's a lesbian max?

SPEAKER_00 58:37

I would love that.

SPEAKER_02 58:38

I don't know. I've always thought maybe. Well, like I don't know if it needs to go even romantically, because I I think it's one of those things where, aside from romance, Chris just doesn't seem to be interested in connections with other human beings, aside from using their phone. Yeah, he really was a such a shallow character. Well, he just he was so much like in a rush and so much like focused on his career and everything of you know, he has to get to Raleigh uh by 7 p.m. or whatever. But like it it wasn't I mean, it which it makes sense or strangers, right? But I feel like every other movie that we would have seen would have been the two at the end, like hardcore making out or whatever, and being like, oh my god, I love you so much. And then this one it's just like we got through this, like you're still a stranger though.

SPEAKER_00 59:21

Interestingly enough, at that waterfall point, Paris, there actually is a deleted scene where they do give more context to her breakup and they do share a passionate kiss, but they're like, there doesn't actually need to be romance here. We're just gonna pluck pluck this bad boy right out.

SPEAKER_03 59:35

Oh, I I wish they had left in more of that monologue because maybe it would have given me something. Um, but I'm glad they cut out the kiss because it wasn't warranted.

SPEAKER_00 59:45

Just know that this movie was as predictable as you thought it was.

SPEAKER_03 59:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 59:49

No surprise there.

SPEAKER_00 59:51

And I think there could be some interesting dynamics there, right? Like Chris is in West Virginia, gotta be in Raleigh by seven. Is he trying to is he from West Virginia and trying to escape? Is this the area that he's from? Right? And he's just like so busy trying to get out and just you know escape any l semblance of poverty, things like that. But you lose all of it, right? And I don't think this is a movie where you can really explore that in a lot of depth, but we got more depth from Scott than we ever got from Chris. Scott, who thinks, you know, there's only one James Brown and any other James Brown, it's a faux James Brown, and that's entirely intolerable.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:27

Yeah, Scott was the college kid in this movie. He had every thought and he wanted to make sure that you knew it.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:32

Truly, we got so much more from Carly and Scott that I can tell you for a fact that Scott is an Aquarius and Carly is a Sagittarius.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:40

Really?

SPEAKER_03 1:00:41

Just based on the vibe and the dynamic of those two, that's exactly what it is. I don't know if this was intentional, but it's what it ended up being.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:48

Okay, so is that a compatible couple?

SPEAKER_03 1:00:51

Oh, yeah, very compatible. Yeah, they would have had a great marriage.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:53

Would have had a great marriage had they not been butchered by cannibals.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:56

Yeah. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:58

That's really the tragedy of this movie. I do wonder though, all things considered, looking at the framing of this movie, Mac, you watched it for the first time now. Paris is a nostalgic pick. Is this something you think you might revisit later?

SPEAKER_02 1:01:10

In the age of like movies being on TV and you tuning into them, sure. In the age of having every possible movie or TV show available at the click of a button whenever you want it, probably not. And not because it's bad, just because there's so much other content out there that I would switch to first.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:28

Very well said, Mac. Um I am, however, interested in re-watching uh wrong turn two and possibly three, uh, because there were some moments in those films that I was expecting in these because I didn't remember which one they were in, uh, and I did not get them.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:43

That's fair. I think I'll want to stay away from the others until we absolutely have to for this show. Mainly, I mean, like when you look at the at Threefinger at the end, being the only one who actually survives this.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:55

Let's talk about the ending.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:57

It's just am I mad at the idea of one of them being alive and killing a cop? I'm not. The visual like what Threefinger looks like, charred to a crisp. It's like, look, unless every fucking movie after this is a prequel, that's what I have to look forward to. No, thank you.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:13

Oh, I'm pretty sure later on they just say, Oh, there were more of them all along.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:16

Oh, really? Okay.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:18

There's no shortage of of uh inbred hill people to kill teenagers in that sequel.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:24

So great.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:24

They have a lot of cousins. Yeah, no, honestly, they like if I if I'm remembering correctly, and listeners let me know if I'm wrong here, um, they kind of go more in depth into those characters than anyone else. You kind of see that they have like a community. There's like with the bird calls, they they have these ways that they used to communicate with each other when they're like being survivalists. Um, and you get more of that depth, which I think is fun. It kind of humanizes them in the wrong ways.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:50

I'm curious if the if the 2021 version is going to use that as the basis.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:56

I don't know. I don't know. And we're gonna have to find out. As we wind down our episode, I'm sure you're all looking forward to Mac's titillating facts and maybe little bits of lies here and there, but Mac.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:08

What do I have for you today? Well, nothing. Because, you know, we're two members short, so it just wouldn't be right, wouldn't be fair, because obviously Paris is the only person that could win. So I think by default, Paris does win. Thank you. Uh we're just gonna skip the facts and fiction.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:22

Honestly, I know quite a bit about this movie too, so I think I would have won anyway. That's accurate.

SPEAKER_01 1:03:27

Hmm.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:28

Well, we'll leave our listeners with one little bonus. Cherry on top fact. Uh, this is apparently the only movie in the franchise that doesn't have sex or nudity, but apparently there almost was. They really were just gonna start ripping off Jessie's clothes when she was tied into the bed. This would have been a very bad movie had that happened.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:44

Yeah, thank God they didn't.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:46

Yeah, thanks for adding that dinosaur nugget because that would have ruined it. I gotta say though, one of the sequels has probably my favorite horror movie sex scene of all time.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:54

Well, that is tempting.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:56

I don't want to give away spoilers, but let's say it's uh it's a mid-coitus death, and it involves an arrow through a tit.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:03

Ah, we do have a lot of mid-coitus deaths in the horror franchise or in the horror genre, so um, I'm curious to see where this ranks. We are gonna have to start including that at the end of your recaps.

SPEAKER_04 1:04:12

Mid-coitus death.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:13

What was the best sex death?

SPEAKER_04 1:04:14

Yeah, best sex death.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:16

Well, there you have it, folks. We are a skeleton crew, and we don't have any factor fiction this time around, but we did have a little few, a few little dino nuggets sprinkled in here and there as little treats. And as of now, Wrong Turn, the original, the first from 2003, Sonya Lizadu, has earned a universal slash. Which probably doesn't sound right, but you know what? Fuck it. It's 2021, weirder things are happening in the world. And while we've had a lot to talk about here, we know that there are so many other people out there who have a lot of feelings about this movie. I know a lot of people were actually looking forward to this. Many say that it's like a guilty pleasure. I don't know what you had to feel guilty about, but that's just me. Keep in mind there are a lot of ways you can reach out to us, starting with our website, hackerslash.com.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:57

Or on our social media accounts, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can also reach out to us on our Hackerslash Hotline. You can leave us a voicemail at 757-606-0128, or visit hackerslash.com slash contact to send us an audio message. Or if you are from Appalachia and you want to tell us about it, you can send us an email to feedback at hackerslash.com.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:17

And if you've enjoyed listening to this episode, consider becoming one of our patrons like Britney. You can visit patreon.com slash hacker slash to earn cool perks for as low as one dollar a month.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:27

We'll see you next time.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:28

Bye.