A bus trip in the wilds of Brazil nearly ends in tragedy when the driver swerves to miss some surfers and crashes, the passengers making it out just in time to watch their only means of transportation tumble down a mountain. After earning the mistrust of the locals, a group of Americans team up with the rest of the white, hot-bodied turistas and they all descend to a conveniently nearby beach, a secluded stretch of sand packed with sun worshippers, beautiful bikini-clad Brazilians and a full bar. Of course, as with most horror flicks, things take a turn for the worse after the group enjoys an evening of dancing, drinking and sex.
With the same concept as Hostel — tourists out of their element fight for their lives — Turistas comes off as more stark reality than slick slasher flick; the tropical locations aren't cinematically-enhanced, the gore isn't dressed-up with gallons of blood, and the idea behind the horror — that the white man is being punished for his cultural insensitivity — is interesting, if not entirely original. Each tense scene builds upon the last, and the villain is ultimately inflexible, a man driven to uphold the moral views that shape his world.
Turistas (PG-13) Stars Josh Duhamel, Melissa George and Olivia Wilde. Opens Dec. 1 at local theaters. 3 stars
This article appears in Nov 29 – Dec 5, 2006.