The fact that Wrong Turn became a franchise in the first place is baffling, not that I'm complaining. The original was essentially The Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets The Hills Have Eyes, and it was great for what it was, but hardly original enough to warrant the franchise treatment. Then it got an action-packed, direct-to-video sequel featuring Henry Rollins kicking all sorts of inbred cannibal ass, and it was awesome. Then the sequels kept coming and coming; Wrong Turn 4 has some merit in its own trashy sort of way, but 3 and 5 are among the worst "films" ever made. So going into Wrong Turn 6: Last Resort, you know not to expect top shelf cinema. But at the very least, you hope for some camp value, gratuitous nudity, and brutal kills.
Wrong Turn 6 tries something unique to the franchise, though: a psychological angle. It's a story about a guy who inherits a large mansion from an unknown relative, and the mansion turns out to be the home and breeding grounds for the grotesque inbred cannibals we've come to know and love. The psychological aspect comes into play with the mansion's caretakers, distant relatives to the protagonist, and how they gradually lure him away from the reality that he once knew, represented by his oblivious group of friends, and eventually seduce him into their demented family culture. It's quite disturbing actually, and there are plenty of wince-inducing scenes here. The problem is the writing, directing, and acting - the bare necessities for a good film.
The dialogue is horrendous; sadly, not in a so-bad-it's-funny sort of way. Things aren't much better acting-wise. It's not like great actors could have done much with a script like this, but these people are so unconvincing in their performances that the dialogue-driven scenes become downright aggravating to sit through. The sole exception is Sadie Katz as the caretaker Sally, who gives an unsettlingly sensual conviction to her character. She's by far the most alluring part of the film and deserves props for adding some credibility to the otherwise irredeemably bland cast. In regards to the directing, it can feel like you're watching a soft-core porn in one scene and then a graphic, torture-porn ridden snuff film in another. This may be due to the writing, but there's not even an attempt at building suspense. It just transitions from scene to scene with no regard to consistency in tone, pacing, or atmosphere; until finally, the movie ends.
Again, there are admittedly great ideas buried under the disastrous execution. The plot is a nice change of pace for the series, the deaths are gruesome, and the ending is no doubt unnerving. Sadly, Wrong Turn 6 is bereft of production value, and the subject matter is too bleak to be enjoyed in a campy, fun way. It's a dreary exercise in gratuity; from the glorious nudity to the grisly gore, it's all shock and no awe. If you've seen the previous five installments, you might as well watch this one - it's a hell of a lot better than 5. But don't go in hoping for a return to the schlocky entertainment value of 2 or the genuine terror of the original because you sure as hell won't find either in Wrong Turn 6.
