The Hills Have Eyes (2006)

Director:

Alexandre Aja

Writers:

Alexandre Aja (screenplay) &
Grégory Levasseur (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

10 March 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

The lucky ones die first.

Plot:

A suburban American family is being stalked by a group of psychotic people who live in the desert, far away from civilization.

Plot Keywords:

Desert | Nuclear Testing | Exploding Truck | Dog | Kidnapped Child

Awards:

2 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Aaron Stanford	...	Doug Bukowski
Kathleen Quinlan	...	Ethel Carter
Vinessa Shaw	...	Lynn Carter
Emilie de Ravin	...	Brenda Carter
Dan Byrd	...	Bobby Carter
Tom Bower	...	Gas Station Attendant
Billy Drago	...	Papa Jupiter
Robert Joy	...	Lizard
Ted Levine	...	Big Bob Carter
Desmond Askew	...	Big Brain
Ezra Buzzington	...	Goggle
Michael Bailey Smith	...	Pluto
Laura Ortiz	...	Ruby
Gregory Nicotero	...	Cyst (as Greg Nicotero)
Maisie Camilleri Preziosi	...	Baby Catherine
Ivana Turchetto	...	Big Mama
Maxime Giffard	...	First Victim
Judith Jane Vallette	...	Small Deformed Child
Adam Perrell	...	Small Deformed Child

Directed by
Alexandre Aja

Writing credits
Alexandre Aja		(screenplay) &
Grégory Levasseur		(screenplay) (as Gregory Levasseur)
Wes Craven		(1977 film)

Produced by
Wes Craven	....	producer
Frank Hildebrand	....	executive producer
Samy Layani	....	producer: Morocco
Inigo Lezzi	....	line producer: Morocco
Peter Locke	....	producer
Marianne Maddalena	....	producer
Cody Zwieg	....	associate producer

Original Music by
tomandandy

Cinematography by
Maxime Alexandre

Film Editing by
Baxter

Casting by
Mark Bennett

Production Design by
Joseph C. Nemec III

Art Direction by
Grégory Levasseur
Tamara Marini		(supervising art director)

Set Decoration by
Alessandra Querzola

Costume Design by
Danny Glicker

Makeup Department
Jaremy Aiello	....	special makeup effects painter
Jaremy Aiello	....	special makeup effects sculptor
Ginger Anglin-Cervantes	....	special makeup effects artist
Chad Atkinson	....	makeup effects lab technician
Howard Berger	....	special makeup effects designer
Mark Boley	....	special makeup effects hair department
Jack Bricker	....	special makeup effects hair department
Chris Cera	....	makeup effects lab technician (as Christopher Cera)
Salima Oulad Dahhou	....	hair stylist (as Salima Ouled Dahhou)
Karl Derrick	....	on-set special effects makeup artist
Rob Derry	....	makeup effects mechanical department
Alex Diaz	....	special makeup effects painter
Alex Diaz	....	special makeup effects sculptor
Anthony Diaz	....	makeup effects lab technician
Massimiliano Duranti	....	hair department head
Jeff Edwards	....	makeup effects mechanical department
Robert Freitas	....	mold maker
Jake Garber	....	special makeup effects shop supervisor
Steve Hartman	....	makeup effects lab technician
Beth Hathaway	....	makeup effects lab technician
Grady Holder	....	dental prosthetics: K.N.B. EFX Group
Akihito Ikeda	....	special makeup effects painter
Akihito Ikeda	....	special makeup effects sculptor
Tom Killeen	....	special makeup effects painter (as Tom Kileen)
Tom Killeen	....	special makeup effects sculptor (as Tom Kileen)
Jackie Kolompar	....	assistant special makeup effects coordinator
Derek Krout	....	makeup effects foam department
Jim Leonard	....	mold maker (as James Leonard)
Abounouom Mariam Lee	....	makeup artist (as Mariam Lee)
Tony Matijevich	....	makeup effects lab technician (as Anthony Matijavich)
Mario Michisanti	....	makeup department head
Clare Mulroy	....	on-set special makeup effects artist
Gregory Nicotero	....	special makeup effects designer (as Greg Nicotero)
Scott Patton	....	makeup designer
Scott Patton	....	on-set special makeup effects designer
Scott Patton	....	on-set special makeup effects supervisor
Gary Pawlowski	....	mold maker (as Gary Powlowski)
Jason Pinsker	....	makeup effects lab technician
Ron Pipes	....	special makeup effects hair department
Ben Rittenhouse	....	makeup effects foam department
Dirk Rogers	....	makeup effects lab technician
Frank Rydberg	....	mold maker
Caleb Schneider	....	makeup effects lab technician
Andy Schoneberg	....	special makeup effects painter (as Andy Schoenberg)
Andy Schoneberg	....	special makeup effects sculptor (as Andy Schoenberg)
Shannon Shea	....	special makeup effects shop supervisor
Matteo Silvi	....	key makeup artist
Lino Stavole	....	mold maker
Kathy Sully	....	makeup effects lab technician (as Katherine Sully)
Veronica Torres	....	special makeup effects coordinator
Jenny Wallace	....	assistant special makeup effects coordinator
Kevin Wasner	....	on-set special effects makeup artist
David Wogh	....	makeup effects mechanical department

Production Management
Tina Anderson	....	post-production supervisor
Moncef Belam	....	production chief
Fettah Lahouissi	....	production manager
Alix Taylor	....	executive in charge of production

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Adil Abdelwahab	....	first assistant director: second unit
Olivier Agostini	....	second assistant director
Bertrant Gagey	....	second assistant director (as Bertrand Gagey)
Michael Gregory	....	second assistant director
Grégory Levasseur	....	second unit director
Dexter Locke	....	second assistant director
Jon-Luke Lourens	....	second assistant director
Shamiel Soni	....	second second assistant director
Franklin A. Vallette	....	first assistant director (as Franklin Vallette)

Art Department
Jérôme Billa	....	art department assistant
Cristina Cecili	....	head painter
Mark Fruin	....	property master
Khalid Guouram	....	construction foreman
Said Lahouissi	....	art department
Harry Pain	....	assistant art director
Lorenzo Sartor	....	carpenter
Luigi Sergianni	....	construction manager

Sound Department
Richard Adrian	....	sound designer
Christopher Alba	....	assistant sound editor
Albert Bailey	....	sound mixer
Nancy Barker	....	assistant sound editor
Dane A. Davis	....	sound designer
William R. Dean	....	sound effects editor (as Bill R. Dean)
Ezra Dweck	....	sound re-recording mixer
François Eudes	....	sound designer (as François-Eudes Chanfrault)
J. Aloysius Flanagan III	....	sound re-recordist
Ginger Geary	....	foley artist
Ronald Kelly	....	assistant foley editor (as Ron Kelly)
Mark Larry	....	supervising sound editor
Ryan Maguire	....	foley mixer
Kimberly R. McCord-Wilson	....	dialogue editor (as Kimberly McCord Wilson)
Carla Murray	....	sound effects editor
Chris Navarro	....	adr recordist
Dick Philip	....	boom operator
Ken S. Polk	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Ken Polk)
Sean Rowe	....	foley artist
Solange S. Schwalbe	....	foley editor (as Solange Schwalbe)
Frank Smathers	....	supervising adr editor
Eric Thompson	....	adr mixer
Bryan O. Watkins	....	sound effects editor (as Bryan Watkins)
Lars Bjerre	....	music restoration/re-mastering (uncredited)
John Soukup	....	sound transfer (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Mohamed Ali Aguermin	....	special effects assistant (as Mohamed Ali Aquermin)
Danilo Bollettini	....	special effects coordinator
Ismail El Ghiachi	....	special effects assistant (as Ismael El Ghachi)
Belaid Fougdal	....	special effects assistant
Akihito Ikeda	....	special effects makeup: KNB EFX Group Inc.
Jason Pinsker	....	lab technician: KNB EFX Group
Franco Ragusa	....	special effects supervisor
Dirk Rogers	....	special effects technician: K.N.B. EFX
Lino Stavole	....	mold/lab technician: K.N.B. EFX Group
El Hassan Tib	....	special effects assistant (as Hassan Tib)
Patricia Urias	....	3D transfer technician
Patricia Urias	....	foam runner
Lindsay Vivian	....	special effects runner
Jenny Wallace	....	special effects runner

Visual Effects by
Laurent Ben-Mimoun	....	digital matte painter
Chad Goei	....	digital artist
Jamison Scott Goei	....	visual effects supervisor (as Jamison Goei)
Tom Haney	....	digital compositor
Wing Kwok	....	digital compositor
Laura LeFaivre	....	visual effects producer
Noll Linsangan	....	digital compositor
Darin McCormick-Millett	....	digital opticals producer: Pacific Title and Art Studio
Sookie Park	....	lead compositor

Stunts
Guiomar Alonso	....	stunt double: Laura Ortiz
Joseph Beddelem	....	stunt rigger
Kai Gaedtke	....	stunt rigger
Audrey Gautier	....	stunt rigger
Gilles Gautier	....	stunt rigger
Philippe Losson	....	stunt performer
Youssef Marchouki	....	stunts (as Youssef Merchouki)
Jason Oettle	....	stunt rigger
Cedric Proust	....	fight coordinator
Cedric Proust	....	stunt coordinator
Florian Robin	....	stunt double: Aaron Stanford
Florian Robin	....	stunts
Rainer Werner	....	stunt rigger (as Werner Rainer)
Othman Ilyassa	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Lyamani Bouhmdi	....	best boy electric (as El Yamani Bouhamdi)
Alessandro Cardelli	....	gaffer
Andrei Cretan	....	assistant camera
Ancuta Iordachescu	....	focus puller: "c" camera, second unit
Ionut Lupulescu	....	focus puller: "b" camera
Imad Rechiche	....	assistant camera
Greg Taieb	....	video assist operator
Lacey Terrell	....	still photographer
Valerio Villalba	....	focus puller
Erik Wilson	....	camera operator
Erik Wilson	....	director of photography: second unit

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Nancy Au	....	costume department supervisor: Los Angeles (as Nancy Capper)
Kelly Chambers	....	wardrobe assistant
Anna Lombardi	....	costume supervisor
Phyllis Thurber-Moffit	....	costume textile artist

Editorial Department
Gary Burritt	....	negative cutter
Michael Hatzer	....	color timer
Mark Scovil	....	first assistant editor
Kathy Thomson	....	digital colorist
Shepard Hall	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Music Department
Jeremy Drake	....	musician: guitar solos
François Eudes	....	music designer (as François-Eudes Chanfrault)
David Franco	....	music supervisor
William Kehoe	....	score assistant engineer
John Kurlander	....	score mixer
Dwight Mikkelsen	....	conductor
Dwight Mikkelsen	....	orchestrator
Sheri Ozeki	....	music editor
Robert Puff	....	music preparation
David Sabee	....	orchestra contractor
Jamie Steele	....	score mixer
Matias Vellutini	....	assistant to composer
Scott Williams	....	musician

Transportation Department
Omar Darouiche	....	transportation captain (as Omar Driouche)
Najma El Mahjoub	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Saadia Aalami	....	assistant: Samy Layani
Noureddine Aberdine	....	location manager
Saad Ajedigue	....	production assistant
Mohamed Atbir	....	set production assistant
Michael Barnes	....	financial legal services
Soumaya Bellafquih	....	assistant: Samy Layani
Géraldine Bergé	....	script supervisor: second unit
Greg Bernstein	....	legal services
Tara Billik	....	assistant: Marianne Maddalena
Susan Bliss	....	post script services
Lmahjoub Boulmi	....	animal wrangler
Mehdi El Atlassi	....	assistant: Frank Hildebrand
Carly Feingold	....	assistant: Wes Craven
Redouane Fihi	....	production assistant
Charles Heaphy	....	production financing
Leah Holmes	....	post production accountant
Abdenabi Izlaguen	....	location manager
Nazha Kajja	....	production coordinator
Nazha Kajja	....	set production assistant
Cheryl Leigh	....	script supervisor
Alex Matcham	....	production controller
Miriam Matejovsky	....	assistant: Alexandre Aja
Nanette Munro	....	assistant: Peter Locke
Heidi S. Pavey	....	coordinator: Los Angeles
Katryna Samut-Tagliaferro	....	production co-coordinator
Ibtisame Semmar	....	production accountant
Howard R. Schuster	....	financing (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Craven-Maddalena Films
• Dune Entertainment
• Major Studio Partners

Distributors

• Fox Searchlight Pictures (2006) (USA) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Netherlands (2006) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (2006) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox de Argentina (2006) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox of Germany (2006) (Germany) (theatrical)
• FS Film Oy (2006) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Forum Cinemas (2006) (Lithuania) (theatrical)
• Fox-Warner (2006) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Presidio (2007) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2006) (Philippines) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Amuse Soft Entertainment (2008) (Japan) (DVD)
• FS Film Oy (2006) (Finland) (DVD)
• Film1 (2007) (Netherlands) (TV) (limited)
• Gativideo (2006) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Gativideo (2006) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Hollydan Works (2007) (Yugoslavia) (DVD)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment Germany (2006) (Germany) (DVD)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD)

Special Effects

• K.N.B. Effects Group (special makeup effects) (as K.N.B. EFX Group)
• Pacific Title (opticals)
• Rez-Illusion (visual effects)
• Cyber F/X Inc. (3D scanning)

Other Companies

• Danetracks  sound design & editorial
• Digital Filmworks  film scanning and recording
• Film Finances  completion guarantor
• Kinos  post-production services: Paris
• Lakeshore Records  soundtrack
• MoviePlacement..com  product placement
• Pacific Title  end crawl
• Pacific Title  opticals
• Pacific Title and Art Studio  film scanning and recording
• Pivotal Post  Avid editing equipment provided by
• Pivotal Post  editing facilities
• Studio X  score recorded at
• Widget Post Production  sound post-production
• Wilshire Stages, The  ADR recording facility

Also Known As:

"Despertar del diablo" - Argentina, Mexico (imdb display title), Venezuela
"The Hills have Eyes - Hügel der blutigen Augen" - Austria, Germany
"Αίμα στους Λόφους" - Greece
"У холмов есть глаза" - Russia
"Aima stous lofous" - Greece (transliterated ISO-LATIN-1 title)
"Brda imaju oci" - Croatia
"Hory mají oci" - Czech Republic (imdb display title)
"Ir kalnai turi akis" - Lithuania (imdb display title)
"Ir kalnai turi akis..." - Lithuania (imdb display title)
"La colline a des yeux" - France
"Las colinas tienen ojos" - Spain
"Le colline hanno gli occhi" - Italy
"Le visage de la peur" - Canada (French title)
"Mägedel on silmad" - Estonia
"Sziklák szeme" - Hungary
"Tepenin gözleri" - Turkey (Turkish title)
"Terror nas Montanhas" - Portugal (imdb display title)
"Viagem Maldita" - Brazil
"Wzgórza maja oczy" - Poland (imdb display title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong gruesome violence and terror throughout, and for language (edited for re-rating)

Runtime:

107 min | 108 min (unrated version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | SDDS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R (edited for re-rating) (certificate #42400) | USA:NC-17 (original rating) | Singapore:R21 | UK:18 | Hong Kong:III | Singapore:M18 (edited version) | Canada:18A (Nova Scotia) | Norway:18 | Germany:18 | Sweden:15 | New Zealand:R18 | Australia:R | Mexico:D | Argentina:18 | Netherlands:16 | Malaysia:18SG | South Korea:Limited | Portugal:M/18 | Ireland:18 | USA:Unrated (uncut DVD version) | France:-16 | Poland:18 | Brazil:18 | Italy:VM14 | Hungary:18 | Iceland:16 | Canada:18A (Ontario) | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Japan:R-18 | Finland:K-18 (self applied) | Czech Republic:12

Filming Locations:

CLA Studios, Morocco

Company:

Craven-Maddalena Films

Trivia:

The gas station set was built on location in Morocco. It was so authentic that occasionally someone not involved in the production would stop to buy gas.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the family is setting up the camper after they crash, the shadow on the wall of the camper from the shade cloth is not matched with the time. It starts with the sun very high in the sky and then it shows the shadow like the sun is very low, all within a few minutes of conversation.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Gas Station Attendant:Ruby, is that you?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Welshy Reviews: Scream 4: Part 1 (#1.17)" (2011)

Soundtrack:

More and More

If you're in the mood for one of 2006's most brutal movies...

Shocking. Disturbing. At times hard to watch. All words to describe the horror of being forced to watch Michael Moore take his shirt off. But these terms also accurately describe this brutally vicious upgrade on Wes Craven's 1977 low-budget horror classic.

What would you do if you were traveling through the desert and became stranded amongst a group of genetically-mutated freaks who were intent on killing you? You'd probably die. Granted, I would kick all sorts of genetically-mutated butt (not an easy accomplishment when said butt has a foot growing out of it kicking right back), but the average human would be in some major trouble, just like the Carter family.

The father looks like he could handle himself in a fair fight, after all he is a detective, but what are three girls, a boy, a cell phone-selling geek, and a pizza place (maybe two of you will get that lame joke) going to do against a bunch of unnaturally strong psychos? How will they survive? Will it be through might or strategy? You'll have to watch the movie to find out. And if you're squeamish then you'll most likely find yourself cringing in your seat and watching with your hands over your eyes. The Hills Have Eyes is a movie that knows exactly what it needs to do to satisfy its target audience, and it does it well.

Case in point... I'm not very vocal during movies. I usually don't clap and scream and hoot and holler like most the dorks sitting around me, but there were a couple of scenes where I literally said aloud, "Ooooooooooh, crap!" Of course, one of those instances was during a trailer for Phat Girlz, but one scene of violence left my mouth hanging open for about 30 seconds. Then I realized that my mouth was agape like some buffoon, so I quickly closed it.

It takes a lot to shock and disturb me these days, so congrats go to The Hills Have Eyes for accomplishing that. It comes at you fast and hard and isn't interested in sugar-coating the violence it's about to serve up. The intensity level starts high and never gives you an opportunity to take a bathroom break. I highly recommend you address any and all bladder issues before the movie begins.

For me, the main drawback of the movie was the "hero." You can argue that he was more of a "regular guy" and not a typical macho hero, but I felt he transitioned a little too quickly from a gun-hating wuss to an ax-wielding killing machine. My hat's off to the dog though; that canine rocked! Easily the coolest dog in a movie since the German Shepherd in The Lost Boys.

"I like horror movies, Johnny, but I liked to be creeped out more than being subjected to a lot of gore. Would I like this?" It's very doubtful. I'll make this as blunt as possible: this is a movie that contains severed body parts, brutal shootings, axes to the head, a person biting off a bird's head and drinking its blood, and disturbing violence to helpless women.

If that description turns you off then you know to save your money. However, if that fits your style then the movie will succeed in giving you exactly what you want. But I have to say that if you think this sounds like fun for the entire family then I'll have to decline any invitations to sit down with you for a family dinner.