The Hills Have Eyes 2 (2007)

11% of critics liked it
(64 reviews)
50% of users liked it
(424,305 ratings)

A naïve group of National Guard trainees embark on a routine training mission in the New Mexico desert, only to find themselves face to face with a murderous band of cannibalistic mutants in prolific music video director Martin Weisz's sequel to the successful 2006 remake. An isolated desert… More A naïve group of National Guard trainees embark on a routine training mission in the New Mexico desert, only to find themselves face to face with a murderous band of cannibalistic mutants in prolific music video director Martin Weisz's sequel to the successful 2006 remake. An isolated desert research camp has been mysteriously abandoned, and now it's up to an elite unit of soldiers to uncover the truth about the scientists who vanished without a trace. Their attention soon diverted by a distress signal emitting from a distant mountain range, the squadron quickly regroups and sets out to investigate. Unbeknownst to the soldiers, however, is the fact that these are the very same hills where the Carter family recently fell prey to a flesh-eating pack of hideously deformed mutants. As the ranks of the cavalry unit steadily begin to dwindle, it soon becomes obvious that their guns provide little defense from an evil driven by hunger to commit the ultimate crime against humanity. Original Hills Have Eyes and Hills Have Eyes, Part 2 writer/director Wes Craven teams with son Jonathan to script this grim and unforgiving tale of man versus mutant. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 29 min.
Directed By: Martin Weisz
Written By: Jonathan Craven, Martin Weisz
Genres: Horror

In Theaters: Mar 23, 2007 Wide
On DVD: Jul 17, 2007
Studio: Fox Atomic

Critic Reviews

Kyle Smith, New York Post
In case you miss what's happening, one soldier wails, 'Oh, man, we're gettin' picked off one by one, here.'
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News
Written, disappointingly, by Wes Craven and his son Jonathan, this limp sequel to last year's remake of Wes' 1977 original feels like the work of a guy who's spent a few too many days lost in the desert.
Matt Zoller Seitz, New York Times
One man-versus-mutant dust-up ends with a sledgehammer to the groin. Enough said.
Randy Cordova, Arizona Republic
It's no better or worse than most films of its genre.
Gregory Kirschling, Entertainment Weekly
A retro horror-comedy featuring quick deaths and cheapo-looking gore, with a few dorky laughs and gross-outs but not so many scares.
Jim Ridley, Village Voice
For anyone other than hardcore gore-hounds, this flipbook of deliberately invoked global-unrest horrors, from friendly-fire killings to rape as a breeding weapon, is effectively mean and unrelenting -- and pretty far from fun.
Blake French, Filmcritic.com
...could have been more than a pale shadow of the original if the filmmakers had taken their time...
Ian Berriman, SFX Magazine
A shift underground is the one big new idea in the script which, a couple of neat reverses aside, is functional at best.
Cynthia Fuchs, Common Sense Media
Gory sequel pits mutants against the military.
Tim Brayton, Antagony & Ecstasy
There is not any plot worth discussing: people go into a desert, some die. The end.
Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central
It sucks balls.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
...dull and interminable...
Christopher Smith, Bangor Daily News (Maine)
Well, no, they don't. If they did and if they could see, they would have read the script, passed on it, and we all would have been better for it.
Staci Layne Wilson, Horror.com
A half-dozen impossibly good-looking, totally interchangeable National Guard recruits find themselves pitted against an angry army of impossibly ugly, totally interchangeable murderous mutants.
Bill Gibron, DVD Verdict
(The Hills Have Eyes) is a movie that wears its disdain for the viewer on every amateurish frame.
Brian Webster, Apollo Guide
This is a nicely-appointed DVD release, with enough extras to almost fool you into thinking the movie is more than it is.
Brian Webster, Apollo Guide
Better made than most low budget and derivative movies of its genre, but it just doesn't have enough to stand out as anything more than an improvement upon those dregs.
Felix Vasquez Jr., Film Threat
This horror fanatic doesn't have room for Craven in his genre anymore. Collect your cash and call it a day already, Wes...
Anton Bitel, Eye for Film
a film as bloodily pointless as the current conflict in Iraq that it so unsubtly allegorises.

Read all 19 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

familiar s

Been quite a while since I watched it, but I faintly remember of having found it okay.
♥˩ƳИИ &

Cast: Lee Thompson Young, Reshad Strik, Jessica Stroup, Ben Crowley, Michael McMillian, Daniella Alonso Director: Martin Weisz Summary: During their final day of desert training, six National Guard recruits (Michael McMillian, Jessica Stroup, Daniella Alonso, Lee Thompson… More
Cast: Lee Thompson Young, Reshad Strik, Jessica Stroup, Ben Crowley, Michael McMillian, Daniella Alonso Director: Martin Weisz Summary: During their final day of desert training, six National Guard recruits (Michael McMillian, Jessica Stroup, Daniella Alonso, Lee Thompson Young, Ben Crowley and Reshad Strik) find themselves up against an army of murderous mutants. They're faced with the ultimate opportunity to put their military skills to the test -- but will they pass? My Thoughts: "I haven't seen the first film and if it's anything close to this film, I think I will have to pass on it. The movie was just OK. I just didn't care for it and there wasn't anything that made me want to watch it again. It was gross and there was a lot of gore which always makes a lame horror film better. But nothing else good about it. The script was whatever and the acting was awful. I guess if you liked the first you may want to see this. But if it's anything like this one, then you may be better off on passing on it."
Coxxie M

this is THE WORST movie ever made that is labeled "horror". my ex-girlfriends herpes could act better than that. and this would not even scare my mom... thats bad.
Leigh R

Of all the Hills Have Eyes films, this is actually my favorite. This coming from a person who is so NOT a fan of sequels and remakes. I really got into the story and enjoyed watching the movie.
Jeff "

The sequel to the 2006 remake is a little better than Aja's film. I preferred this film because it was a newer take on the storyline and it was a bit more disturbing than the first. I loved the gore and the violence, and this film will definitely not disappoint fans of the first… More
The sequel to the 2006 remake is a little better than Aja's film. I preferred this film because it was a newer take on the storyline and it was a bit more disturbing than the first. I loved the gore and the violence, and this film will definitely not disappoint fans of the first film. A terrific film from start to finish, The Hills Have Eyes II is a thrills a minute sequel and serves even more blood than the first one. Decent acting with moments of sheer terror add to the nature of this sinister sequel, A film that terrifies as much as it entertains, this sequel is a whole new different take and serves a new chapter in The Hills Have Eyes storyline. A intense, horrifying film, this sequel delivers.
Dead A

Watching this is actually waste of time.
Dean M

Bloody sicko, terrible and scary of these freak mutants who are tracking a group of National Guard trainees in the desert. I always let out a groan of disappointment when a sequel replaces civilian characters with the military. Soldiers are always so lazily written and never fail to… More
Bloody sicko, terrible and scary of these freak mutants who are tracking a group of National Guard trainees in the desert. I always let out a groan of disappointment when a sequel replaces civilian characters with the military. Soldiers are always so lazily written and never fail to thoroughly bore with crude caricatures of strutting macho bullshit. Needless to say, every character is a broad and generic cliché. They act in dumb and illogical ways, making dumb and illogical decisions that lead them to predictably dumb and illogical deaths. Horror remake of 1985's The Hills Have Eyes II.
KJ P

Turned it off halfway through, because it is probably the worst attempt at a horror film I've ever seen. It's just more like a gross gore flick than a horror flick!
Tony G

Abhorrently incompetent
Wahida K

I love this Movie. This is Horror. fav weird fav bit The captive Missy is carried to a room with makeshift furniture and is assaulted by the chameleon mutant. She fends it off by biting off part of his elongated tongue. At this point the large and menacing Papa… More
I love this Movie. This is Horror. fav weird fav bit The captive Missy is carried to a room with makeshift furniture and is assaulted by the chameleon mutant. She fends it off by biting off part of his elongated tongue. At this point the large and menacing Papa Hades enters the room, and the chameleon flees in fear. Missy is subjected to brutal physical assault and rape at the hands of Hades.
Jens S

This movie is trying to be to its prequel what Aliens was to Alien, the kickass sequel with marines in it. And that works for about half of the movie. The set up is actually pretty good, with quite a few gory shockers and a situation that is different enough from the first. The… More
This movie is trying to be to its prequel what Aliens was to Alien, the kickass sequel with marines in it. And that works for about half of the movie. The set up is actually pretty good, with quite a few gory shockers and a situation that is different enough from the first. The sometimes pretty stupid decisions the soldiers take, as they have to find their way through the hills of mutated miners, can be explained with them still being in training, at least partially. Like in part one, it's the liberal thinking, seemingly weak characters that develop into the true heroes, which makes the body count order a tad predictable but is still nice to see. Once the soldiers enter the mines, things get very repetitive, sadly. Once again there is rape, then lots of dark tunnels, that all look the same, the final battle with the meanest of the mutants is quite similar to the one from part one. Remember, when a giant pervert strangles you but has an open head wound, poke it. So after a good start the second half disappoints, but at least Jessica Stroup is extremely gorgeous to look at.
Bruce B

A pretty good Slasher film, I saw the original Hills Have Eyes, but not the remake didn't know that they redid the original, that review to come at a later date. This one starts out with some secret army base in a remote area, and some inbreed ugly people are living in the caves… More
A pretty good Slasher film, I saw the original Hills Have Eyes, but not the remake didn't know that they redid the original, that review to come at a later date. This one starts out with some secret army base in a remote area, and some inbreed ugly people are living in the caves and rocks, Army people start to disappear, Typical Slasher film, not outstanding moments, but still all around good, enjoyable edge of the seat killem-choppem up type film. I'll go a little overboard and say 3 1/2 stars. Its in my collection, picked it up for $5.00 at Best Buy.
Dean !

Pretty much more of the same but not quite as intense and a bit too predictable. However still a pretty good horror and quite brutal, gory just like the first.
Dr Blood

All I really want to say is that the gore was "Lush!" I can't really think of any other reason to watch this but, then again, if you aren't into gore then this isn't the kind of film for you in the first place. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Of course, it's a… More
All I really want to say is that the gore was "Lush!" I can't really think of any other reason to watch this but, then again, if you aren't into gore then this isn't the kind of film for you in the first place. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Of course, it's a sequel to a remake and the title makes things as confusing as hell. The original "Hills Have Eyes 2" was completely crap though so perhaps it's better to think of this as the replacement. Anyway, I loved the gore, wasn't interested in the acting or characterisation, and found the soldiery stuff to be totally unconvincing. Having said that, the action scenes were great, the jump scares worked and, yet again, although it's not scary to anybody over the age of 13, it was quite a decent try at getting the "Hills" franchise back on track. I have no idea why they filmed it in Morocco using equipment from London or why KNB only admit to doing the make-up effects rather than all the practical effects. It all looks like KNB work anyway... and it's lush! This was much better than the first remake and I'm now quite looking forward to "The Hills Have Eyes III".
Al S

Better than the first. A mind-blowing and heart-pounding thrill-machine. It's shocking and freightning and incrediably terifying. An endlessly smart and fun blood bath.
Craig S

Directed by: Michael Weisz. Starring: Jessica Stroup, Daniella Alonso, Michael McMillian, Jacob Vargas. It all restarted in 2006 with Alexandre Aja's remake of Wes Craven's cult classic The Hills… More
Directed by: Michael Weisz. Starring: Jessica Stroup, Daniella Alonso, Michael McMillian, Jacob Vargas. It all restarted in 2006 with Alexandre Aja's remake of Wes Craven's cult classic The Hills Have Eyes. Aside from being some of the most clichéd material in years, it was reasonably tense, unrelenting, graphic, atmospheric and very entertaining. Now comes a sequel (quite quickly I might add), the bad reviews pored there way in and I automatically clicked onto how this film will be....dull and derivative with no other redeeming qualities....I was slightly wrong. The story follows 2 years after the remake where the original nuclear testing ground full of mutants is unknown to many and only known as Section 16. When a group of trainee National Guards are sent in to give supplies to scientists installing a monitoring system, they soon find the place to be deserted, the scientist dead or missing and before long, they realize the horrible truth behind this place. Although the film is no where near as brilliant as it could have very easily been, the script written by legend Wes Craven and his brother Jonathan makes things basic but reasonably intriguing....at least for the first 10 minutes. It starts with a birth and we get a basic idea of how everything is kept going behind these hills, from there we are shown the true brutality that these mutants can deliver, even more so than the first....but from there, the characters are introduced and it goes downhill. What follows is carbon copy. The 'National Guards' or basically military are typical cardboard cutouts, you have the addition of women who are tough but hot, the macho Latino, the slightly more cautious outcast, the list goes on. None of these characters have souls and they are played by there unknown TV cast with nothing more than mediocrity, with some being laughably bad. Although some ideas show a bit of brain activity, what follows plot-wise is a rehash of many other films, from The Descent to Aliens. Adding newbie Michael Weisz, a music video director to the plate doesn't really change much, I like the fact that Wes is giving someone new a chance but he does not have the chops to pull it off. Not only does he cover every common and very predictable scare (you know.....BOO!), he doesn't have the skill to build any tension or atmosphere. I bet your asking yourself, why a 3 rating after what I just said? I was somehow entertained. I usually seem to enjoy a dull gory film among many, sort of a guilty pleasure. What made me enjoy this was the fast pacing and the really graphic, nonstop gore and it kept me watching for its very short running time. Usually I have a knact for noticing some of the most clichéd films, when I see them I never, ever be nice about them and write a review about them as I see fit. With The Hills Have Eyes 2, I really expected an absolutely terrible, dull and terribly clichéd sequel, but I was slightly surprised. Although full of cliché, a rehashed plot, cardboard characters and a lack of real scares, tension and atmosphere to really call it a good 'horror' film, The Hills Have Eyes 2 is fast, graphic and quite an entertaining 80 minutes worth. Just shut your brain off....and then hope that they don't make another.
Lafe F

A competent sequel. I really enjoyed it. It veers off in a different direction than the first, with a group of loser soldiers being sent into the Nuclear Testing Zone and meeting up with some nasty mutants. I didn't like all the military cussing attitude at the beginning. It… More
A competent sequel. I really enjoyed it. It veers off in a different direction than the first, with a group of loser soldiers being sent into the Nuclear Testing Zone and meeting up with some nasty mutants. I didn't like all the military cussing attitude at the beginning. It compares the war of the mutants with the war in the Middle East. The soldiers are no worse than the miserable lot in ALIENS and Predator movies. It was a bit hard to tell them apart with the same desert camoflauge uniforms and helmets. The first movie was mostly serious. This one was almost as silly as "Leprechaun 4: In Space". Like many others, I was siding with the mutants rather than the soldiers. The best elements were the setting and the goopy violence. The outhouse scene was funny, but looked totally fake. Better than the crappy 1985 "Hills Have Eyes 2" which had a dog-flashback and a completely different story. Hills 2 (2007) delivered the gore and horror goods, but didn't break much new ground in the genre.
Arash X

One of the worst sequels I have ever seen
Steve B

I didn't hate the remake, so I'll give this one a go. HAS to be better than the original sequel. **UPDATE** Actually, it was far, far WORSE than the original sequel in so many ways. Why do we keep watching these things?
Roy G

A enjoyable sequel if you like this sort of thing.