Feed me, Seymour

Every once in while, a horror movie comes along that looks like it might actually be a good one. Often times, this hope is false.

But, occasionally, like The Ruins, these potentially splendid films just a little over par.

Something is bound to go wrong when two traveling couples decide to take a journey to secret, off-the-map pyramid ruins with two German 20-somethings while vacationing in Mexico.

Once the group finds the hidden Mayan temple, everything starts to work against them. A large number of heavily armed local hostiles gather ritualistically and make sure that the group of foreign trespassers never brings the evil that lies within to rest of the world — that evil being the strange, intelligent, human-feeding vegetation that hides the temple from the world.

It’s obvious what you’re thinking. "Killer weeds?" Yes, it sounds lame, but that is not the horror in The Ruins that makes it worthwhile. What sets The Ruins apart from every other horror movie is that the protagonists are often intimately aware of the precariousness of their situation: Whether from the creepy foliage, the supply shortage, the natives, or other lurking hazards, our heroes are certain that death will come.

If you’re a fan of horror, you’ll definitely enjoy The Ruins for being just a bit better than every other one you’ve seen in the last year. If you don’t like horrors, then stay away from The Ruins.

Because of multiple makeshift surgeries, there are many graphic, bloody scenes that leave you feeling woozier than the poor chum under the knife.