Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
Chris crashes into a carload of other young people, and the group of stranded motorists is soon lost in the woods of West Virginia, where they're hunted by three cannibalistic mountain men who are grossly disfigured by generations of inbreeding.
Wrong Turn is a competent but largely by-the-numbers early 2000s slasher that hits familiar genre beats without much originality. The plot recycles well-worn survival horror tropes — stranded youngsters hunted by deformed killers in the woods — offering little narrative surprise. Acting is serviceable but unremarkable, with characters defined mainly by their function as potential victims. Cinematography is a modest strength, with the West Virginia forest setting used effectively to build atmosphere and dread. Novelty is low; while the inbred cannibal hillbilly premise has a grindhouse flavor, it borrows heavily from Deliverance and The Hills Have Eyes without meaningfully distinguishing itself. The ending resolves predictably with minimal catharsis, leaving little lasting impression beyond its efficient delivery of genre thrills.