The Hike (2011) Jemma Bolt, Stephanie Siadatan, Lisa-Marie Long, Zara Phythian Movie Review

The Hike (2011)   2/52/52/52/52/5


The Hike (2011)

You Can Take a Hike

After serving a tour on Afghanistan Kate (Zara Phythian) returns to Britain where to catch up with her friends they decide to go hiking in the woods. Whilst not all the girls are prepared for roughing it in the British wilds they are pushed on by Kate. But they are not alone in the woods and after they are attacked with Kate left for dead whilst the others are kept prisoner it becomes a battle of survival for these friends.

I once wrote of a horror movie that it felt like the casting director popped down a local modelling agency and picked the hottest look men to star in the movie. I hate to say it but "The Hike" initially comes across as the same with 5 young women who are all attractive and fit. Now I am not saying that attractive women can't go hiking but these 5 look like they would be more at home in the clubs of Ibiza rather than roughing it in British woodland. It makes "The Hike" come across as false right from the word go with almost all of them failing to sound convincing when it comes to being believable as friends.

But of course having an attractive cast is important for this movie because "The Hike" is an attempt to cross survival in the woods with torture porn and a British take on it. It is an idea which should work but for some reason "The Hike" doesn't work and it isn't being British which is the issue as movies such as "Eden Lake" and "A Lonely Place to Die" have proved that horror in the woods can be done in Britain and done effectively. Nope the problem is that far too often "The Hike" seems more concerned with the hotness of its female stars, and a couple of male ones, rather than the story and the horror.

On the subject of the horror well let's say we are talking attractive young women, caught and being tortured. Exploitative is a word which comes to mind, well that and a few other less than complimentary words. It just doesn't work and whilst I am sure there are some young horny men who might find the movie a strange turn on anyone who doesn't think of women purely as sex objects will find it terrible. The thing is that the atmosphere in "The Hike" is completely wrong and so never feels like a horror movie.

What this all boils down to is "The Hike" is the sort of movie which might appeal to a young horny audience who get excited by modern torture movies but for anyone who is serious about horror movies will find it embarrassingly weak.


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