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Joy Ride
Movie: 9/10
This was one of my favorite films of 2001. Sure, it's a popcorn B-Horror movie, however, it is a damn good one. The plot is simple and that is what makes it all the more terrifying. It doesn't feature some over the top, invincible villain or some over the top scenario. It's down to Earth and realistic for the most part, and it scared the living shit out of me. It managed to do this without much gore also, director John Dahl leaves all the violence to your imagination. Basically, the plot is a rehash of Duel, sprinkled with dark humor, which makes things even more lively. The plot, as I said, is fairly simple: it deals with two brothers Lewis (Paul Walker) and Fuller (Steve Zahn) who embark from California back home to New York, picking up Venna (Leelee Sobieski) in the middle. They get a CB installed in the car and soon they get into a whole heap of trouble. They pull a practical joke on a trucker, Rusty Nail. They pretend to be a female trucker named Candy Cane, and they set up a date with Rusty Nail at a hotel. However, Rusty Nail is not meeting Candy Cane, he is being setup to meet a racist redneck. Rusty nearly kills the bigot and sets out for revenge on the three friends. I don't want to say much more, but the film is a successful blend of comedy and extremely effective thriller. The acting is decent and realistic all around, thanks mostly to Zahn, who is one of the best actors working today, and a well written script. John Dahl's direction is also rock solid. This is a great scary movie.
Video: 9/10
Looks great, anamorphic widescreen. The neons and the desert/night scenes look great. Very good transfer.
Audio: 9/10
Again, sounds great in 5.1 and stereo, both very solid.
Extras: 9/10
This disc is stacked. It has four alternate endings and a 30 minute alternate ending that pretty much alters the whole movie. The cool thing about this is that you can watch the scenes by themselves or do "More than one Joy Ride" and get any one of the five while you're watching. Very cool. The DVD also comes with not one, not two, but three commentary tracks by the writers, director, and actors. Ranging from information to Steve Zahn's comic relief, there is some very decent stuff here. It gets a little bare at times and I kind of wish it would have been put together to make one great track. At least it had one. Also included are a featurette, trailer, a deleted scene, and voice auditions for Rusty Nail (very cool). This disc will keep you occupied for sleepless nights on end.
Overall: 9/10
It's cheap (15 bucks), it's stacked, and the movie kicks ass.
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