REVIEW: Thriller ‘Turistas’ is a cringe-worthy wonder

By JAMES WARD
Gannett News Service

November 29, 2006 03:15 pm

— Something you’ll never hear: “Thank you for flying Air Brazil. Your in-flight movie today will be ‘Turistas.’ ”
In fact, don’t be surprised to hear cries of protest from the Brazilian tourist board after they hear what’s in this gory and suspenseful thriller about a vacation gone horribly wrong for a group of American and European tourists visiting remote Brazil.
And when we say horribly wrong, we don’t mean a lost passport or a case of dysentery.
Nope, we mean ending up in the middle of the rain forest, bound and gagged in dog cages and listening as a friend has vital organs removed.
Actually, before the unfortunate tourists end up in their precarious situation the impossibly good-looking vacationers find themselves on a bus ride from hell — which is almost as disturbing as the action to come later.
After the bus plunges over a cliff — with the passengers escaping just in time — Alex (Josh Duhamel), his sister (Olivia Wilde) and her friend (Beau Garrett) end up discovering an idyllic, remote beach with cheap lodgings and a rocking bar. There they meet some other British, Swedish and Australian tourists.
After a night of hard drinking, the tourists wake up to find they’ve been abandoned and that all their belongings have been stolen. A “friendly” native eventually leads the group to his uncle’s house deep in the jungle where the forced slicing and dicing takes place.
Director John Stockwell (“Into the Blue,” “Blue Crush”) handles the action in a straightforward way, with a minimum of flashy editing or camera tricks.
In fact, you’ll probably wish for a few more edits during one extended scene in which the demented doctor (Miguel Lunardi) does surgery, all the while delivering a scathing monologue about how developed countries have exploited the Third World for too long.
Aside from that squirm-worthy scene, an extended sequence when Alex and his sister attempt to escape through a series of submerged caves is also handled in claustrophobic fashion.
So, is “Turistas” great filmmaking? No. But it does deliver solid thrills and a few morbid, gross-out moments.
It also reminds you that a safe, packaged and bland vacation at Club Med could be easier on your kidneys.

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