Is this a scary enough pose for you?

Paul Sims

Written and directed by Victor Salva, it's been billed as a fiendishly scary thriller, although I wouldn't go that far.

Maybe if it hadn't been for the independent Canadian film Ginger Snaps I might have said this is the best horror for quite a while like a few critics, but I will agree it's not bad.

Hello...anyone there

I can probably mention quite a few films it reminded me of, especially the scenes with the rusty old truck. Films such as Duel, Mad Max and The Cars That Ate Paris (If you remember that one, like me, you'll shudder every time you see a Beetle).

That said I can tell you exactly what to expect. A very good episode of the Twilight Zone, Tales From The Crypt, or the Outer Limits. For me that was part of it's charm.

The trusty old shotgun

It's been quite a while since hillbillies were blamed for anything and I've got to admit setting any film in mid town America gives me the spooks straight away. I think I read too many H. P. Lovecraft books when I was younger.

"Who knows what goes on in them there hills".

Don't get out of the car

The basic story follows a couple of college kids, Trish (Gina Philips) and Darry (Justin Long) who become prey to a disturbing figure on an eerie trip home from college.

Cue that rusty old truck, with the coolest number plate in film history 'BEAT1NGU'.

They witness the occupant of the truck dumping what looks like bodies down a chute at an old abandoned church in the middle of nowhere.

A gruesome discovery

When they investigate they make a gruesome discovery and what follows is a chilling game of cat and mouse. There are a few places that make you jump but as you realise where the story is going it loses a bit of it's impact.

The ending is a bit obvious but as a fan of late night trashy horror films I enjoyed it. This film isn't going to take you anywhere new but go on, enjoy being scared again.