One of Wes Craven's
earlier and better horrors, in which we find it's never wise to go off the beaten track. As The Carter
Family (which includes a young Dee Wallace) find out, as they are crossing the dessert highway to California,
when they foolishly decide to take a detour down a dusty dirt track, in search of an old abandoned silver mine.
Of course, being a horror film, their station wagon subsequently breaks down, stranding them in the middle of nowhere. Mr Carter and his son-in-law Doug go off in search of help, leaving the rest of the family with the car and caravan. Not realising that they are being watched from the nearby mountains...
Sure enough, as night falls, the stranded family find themselves facing a bloody battle for survival as they are attacked by a brutal family of cannibalistic retards, that have been living wild nearby. As they proceed to murder and eat them in a suitably nasty fashion, as well as looting their caravan.
Of the few that remain, they find their ordeal has only just begun, as they try and find a way to turn the tables on their attackers, who are hell bent on finishing what they started, and make it back to safety. Leading to a particularly bloody showdown.
Though looking a little dated now, the film is still somewhat unsettling in places and still manages to retain its shock value despite its relative age. The cannibal family are extremely ghoulish, especially Pluto (the family are all named after planets, Mercury, Jupiter etc) as played by horror actor Michael Berryman, in the role that arguably launched his horror career. And there are some pretty sadistic kill scenes, although that being said, the film is not particularly that gory.
Definitely worth a watch, even just as a curiousity piece. Given that this is not only one of Wes Craven's earlier films, but also features a young Dee Wallace and Michael Berryman in his defining role.
