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Review

John Stockwell (Crazy/Beautiful, Blue Crush) goes to Brazil to film this somewhat formulaic torture/slasher entry, exposing a young, international cast to an assured future as victims of a cruel fate. Locales lend an exotic sheen to the proceedings as a tour bus crashes on a narrow mountain pass, spilling the free spirits who start trekking through the verdant undergrowth. The guys and gals find a beautiful beach and soon are joined by happy locals, partying hard all night long. Sunrise finds them hung-over and stripped of all their possessions. Thus begins a familiar descent to one of the levels of hell, reserved especially for unwary travelers in a foreign land. A Brazilian lad, Kiko, is empathetic to their plight and volunteers to lead them to what he calls a "safe house". The most interesting sequence, swimming to underwater caves and then through the jungle, is underscored by the ambient sound design. Although lengthy, it adds a surreal air to the grittiness of the subject. Arriving at the house, oft-used clichés abound: creaking floorboards, deep shadows and mocking jungle birds build tension toward the pivotal scene – the arrival of a helicopter. The narrative takes a turn to political and societal statements at this point, and the actual central theme is revealed.

The ensuing escape for the survivors is effective in its editing and pacing intervals, recapitulating the desperation of both hunter and hunted in echoes of despair and upheaval. Themes of panic, claustrophobia and the mad rush to freedom are illustrated in the over-the-top finale. An effort to seriously dramatize the need to survive saves Turistas from being merely a grade-B thriller.

 -- Max Brinck