The Ruins (2008)

"The Ruins" is a feeble-minded take on Scott B. Smith's great horror novel of the same name. This despite the author adopting his own work for the screen, just as he did with the vastly superior (book and movie) "A Simple Plan." The plot: A group of American college students vacationing in Mexico visit mysterious, unmapped Mayan ruins. There a deadly force rips them apart ... and quite literally, too. Smith's book was a great, scary read, an F-You to young, dumb America. The grisly deaths of his intentionally vapid characters were shocking to read because you got inside their heads, and his denouncement was unnerving as hell. The movie plays loose with the book and goes for easy and bland dodges, and adds in a sequel-opening ending. Still, the makeup effects are top notch, so if you're into gore, this delivers. C