This is a good example of what horror fans have to put up with. Horror fans all know about the good horror films that get everything firing on all cylinders, from acting, to story, to the all important scares. Horror fans all know about the bad horror films - the ones that are so inept that they wouldn't scare a child and are plagued by a bad story and even worse acting.

Then there are films such as The Hills Have Eyes II, which, for my money, does a lot of things right, but is tempered by the presence of some awful dialogue and acting. It has a story that we have seen before, but builds enough tension and delivers enough gore to keep us - or me at least - interested until the inevitable conclusion.

Way back in 1977, Wes Craven delivered a film that would become a cult classic. It was followed by a vastly inferior sequel in 1985. So it was inevitable that in this horror remake happy climate being cultivated in Hollywood that someone's dollar sign-filled eyes would turn towards these films. The result was the 2006 film The Hills Have Eyes, helmed by Alexandre Aja, who had proven himself with Haute Tension. The movie actually worked, bringing unease to the big screen. Then came this sequel, which takes the formula used to great effect in James Cameron's Aliens and sucks out everything that made it good, leaving behind just enough to keep the superficiality afloat. Oh yes, it is also not a remake of the original sequel, rather a sequel to the remake, and even then it is by title only. This could have been given a different title and no one would have known the difference.

In a nutshell, you have scientists working on a top secret project, attacked by mutants living in the caves. Rookie National Guardsmen are sent to investigate, they are attacked, and as their numbers dwindle, they must find a way to survive. Sound familiar? It could be used to describe any number of films. If you are going to watch this, you are not going to do it for the originality. Despite all of that, it has some nice cinematography, and a number of good gore effects. I was also happy with the genuine tension that it built up. Despite the awful acting and the predictability of the plot, I still found the survival horror base to be quite effective.

This time around Aja did not return. Instead the directorial reins were taken up by Martin Weisz, making the jump from music videos to the big screen. He does not bring anywhere near the style that Aja did, but still, it was effective enough for the mediocre script from Wes Craven and his son, Jonathan. Then there is the case of the cast, led by Michael McMillian doing his best impression of Eric Forman (Topher Grace from That 70s Show); they don't bring much to the table other than a series of mutant fodder. I think a good alternate title for this would have been Eric Forman Goes to War.