The Ruins: Stick to the map

The story starts off slow and meandering. But after we move into the jungle things pick up considerably. The tension hits a hight point almost immediately and it doesn't let up until the final fade out at the very end.

Like most book-to-screen adaptations, I haven't read the book (by Scott B. Smith) to see how the stories compare. But other than a near misfire at the beginning, I can't see that it would matter much if the two story lines are world's apart. The film, the story, the characters are all so fresh, it's difficult to find anything else to compare it too. It's too bad moviegoers aren't paying much attention.

I was taken by the acting. Cast with four relatively unknowns (Jenna Malone, Jonathan Tucker, Shawn Ashmore, Laura Ramsey) we get to see some real emotion and real character development (as, opposed, to say some of the "stars" out there who are celebrities first and actors a distant second). They carry the tension and conflict well, pushing you to the point of exhaustion by the film's end. They also teach us one important lesson, while on vacation: Stick to your map.

So far, this is the highest ranking I'm giving any film I've reviewed at Picture Start: 4 1/2 stars.