Don't look now, but the window for reevaluating so-called torture porn and other 2000s horror trends has just begun to crack open. So where do films like Joe Lynch's Wrong Turn 2: Dead End belong in the horror canon? This is the question asked and answered by Ariel Powers-Schaub (Ghouls Magazine), whose upcoming book Millennial Nasties: Analyzing a Decade of Brutal Horror Film Violence puts the crosshairs on 21st-century horror.
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In the latest attempt to strike television gold, the cast and crew of reality show The Apocalypse: Ultimate Survivalist head deep into the West Virginia countryside to shoot the pilot of their new series. Leading the shoot is director Michael Epstein (Matthew Curie Holmes) and host Dale Murphy (Henry Rollins), who set up shop and explain the rules to the gaggle of contestants. But little does the cast of The Apocalypse know they're in real-life danger: a group of local cannibal mutants begins to hunt them for food, and the cast must break free of their stereotypes and work together if they are to survive the day.
In this short excerpt from the podcast, Powers-Schaub explains why Lynch's sequel was the perfect vehicle for post-9/11 fears:
"The setup of the reality TV show is brilliant. The show is called Ultimate Survivor, or US for short, and the setup is the apocalypse has happened and, quote, the government is no longer in control. Right? So, very 2007 America — we have to protect ourselves."
The Wrong Turn 2: Dead End episode of Certified Forgotten is now available to stream on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or the podcast platform of your choice.
