Cinematical

Hey, horror fans. When I mention the title The Hills Have Eyes Part 2, what do you think of? That's right: a stunningly inept movie that Wes Craven slapped together in 1985 when he was struggling in between the successes of A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream. (His other "mid-point" flicks included Deadly Friend (1986), The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988), Shocker (1989), and The People Under the Stairs (1991), some of which still have their share of fans, although very few horror hounds consider 'em any sort of underrated masterpieces.) Indeed, Hills 2 was so cheap and silly that the only thing its still remembered for is a flashback/dream sequence delivered by a canine. (Yes, seriously.)

So then what are we to make of Fango's recent report that not only does Fox Searchlight want a sequel to Alex Aja's The Hills Have Eyes remake, but they also want it ready for release by next March -- one calendar year after the remake was released? (We'll call it the "Saw release pattern," although Police Academy pulled it off for like six consecutive Aprils.) Plus it seems that Aja (also beloved for his High Tension) has passed on the sequel, which means that Mr. Craven will enlist relative newcomer Mike Bassett to helm the sequel. (Astute genre freaks will remember Bassett's surprisingly good Deathwatch from a few years back, plus he's got a new one called Wilderness that's about to hit the scene.) Craven plans to pen the sequel's screenplay with his son.

But what of plot? Fair question.

“We want to continue the story of the miners,” Craven tells (Fangoria). “This time, a group of National Guard screw-ups come face to face with the mutants on their last day of training in the desert. We will take the audience underground [into the mines] as well ... I wrote Last House on the Left in three days, so this shouldn’t be so tough.”

Someone might want to ask Mr. Craven how many days it took him to write his previous Hills sequel.