The Ruins spoilers

If you haven’t read Scott Smith’s thriller THE RUINS yet and you want to avoid potential spoilers, you might not want to read further (even though the “big secret” is sort of printed on the book’s cover). This is the safe synopsis: The story involves several attractive tourists who capriciously head off into the Mexican jungle seeking an archaeological dig site, only to encounter hostile villagers and an ancient threat.

The author (who also wrote the superior A SIMPLE PLAN) recently talked to USA Today about the upcoming adaptation, and how the “villain” of the novel — a mound of nasty killer plants — will take shape on the big screen. The wicked vines won’t be very chatty in their film debut… a major alteration from the book, in which the plant’s ability to mimic human speech plays a significant part in the growing terror (Smith feared it would seem “unintentionally comic” in the movie’s context). Smith also says that the vines’ appearance will change as it consumes the visitors: “It’s kind of dried out and grayish, and as it’s fed, it becomes much more vibrant.”

The movie, due in April 2008, is directed by photographer and music video guy Carter Smith, and stars Jonathan Tucker, Jena Malone, Laura Ramsey and Shawn “Iceman” Ashmore.