skybrick736
Without a notable road horror movie since The Hitcher, Joy Ride came out and became a hit with younger audiences and established itself as one of the better horror films at the start of the twenty first century in 2001. The idea of two brothers playing pranks on a trucking radio systems is a good initial concept of a thrilling road movie. Not being able to see the trucker but his car, the voice had to sound creepy and believable. The rugged voice hit the mark pretty well and led to some highly quotable remarks, for instance "Candyy Cannne"
The film is exciting overall but the beginning, middle and ending seemed a bit detached at times, a blemish on the writing and editing throughout.
NateWatchesCoolMovies
Joyride, although pretty far fetched, is a white hot highway set thriller in the vein of The Hitcher or Duel, that jabs in all the right places for wonderfully cheap thrills and a trashy, almost midnite movie style aesthetic that's refreshing. It doesn't take itself too seriously, and at the same time shows us unrelentingly grim events unfolding that might actually be possible, walking a steady tightrope between camp and genuine fear. Paul Walker, that handsome devil, plays Lewis, a nice guy on a road trip with his screw up ex con brother Fuller (eternally goofy Steve Zahn in full ham mode). They are making their way across the southwest to pick up Venna (Leelee Sobieski), Lewis's friend, which he plans to change. Also along for the ride is an old CB radio that Fuller hauls along for his own amusement, listening in on trucker jargon tossed across the airwaves. Soon they stumble on an ominous frequency, presided over by a growling denizen with the moniker 'Rusty Nail'. Something's clearly not quite right with this weirdo, but being the dumbbells they are, they foolishly play a pretty mean prank on him over the air, causing him to snap. Rusty Nail isn't just some lonely trucker, but a belligerent, unforgiving psychopath, and worse, he's smart. He launches a backroad crusade to torment and psychologically intimidate the two of them, continuing on when they meet up with Venna. The voice of Rusty Nail is provided by one other than veteran cowboy Ted Levine, using his guttural, menacing drawl to wonderful effect, and hitching the movie up a few notches just by doing so. Telling you to put the lotion in the basket is nothing compared to the threats we get to hear him utter here. Walker, Zahn and Sobieski hold up their end well enough, but are mostly there to be frantic, idiotic bullseye targets for the unseen monster trawling the interstate after them through the night. Much of it is silly and stretches the boundaries of credibility, but it's all in wicked good fun, and always has a knowing sense of what it takes to make a high concept, low morale style thriller work. Just remember... Rusty Nail needs to find Candy Cane.
Wizard-8
I saw this in the theater when it first came out, and I thought it was pretty decent. Today I decided to watch the DVD of the movie to see if it still held up, and it still does. Watching it today, it struck me how leisurely it is for a long time before the protagonists really realize how much they are in danger. That's not to say it's boring until the real thrills start - there is always a good deal of interest throughout. One of the interesting things is that unlike most other thrillers, the protagonist brothers are portrayed to not be all that likable. That might sink another thriller, but here it actually helps; I was amused and satisfied to see these somewhat unlikable people put through a number of torturous experiences. If there's a significant flaw in the movie, it is the very ending, where the antagonistic Rusty Nail character seems to give up his quest for revenge out of the blue. But the movie as a whole works pretty well.
juneebuggy
This was pretty good. Not super original or outstanding in any way but still really effective, fun and even scary at times. The horror element is well paced and Walker and Zahn have great chemistry together so that I found myself alternating between being genuinely freaked out and laughing at some well delivered line. "This CB is like a prehistoric internet or something." "Well, just how scared am I supposed to be? Much more than usual." Sometimes these simple (premise) movies without the huge budget or tons of special effects are worth catching. Paul Walker (sigh) plays a college freshman on a summer road trip to pick up his girlfriend. Along for the ride is his smart-ass brother who uses the car's CB radio to play a cruel but harmless prank on a lonely trucker known only by the handle Rusty Nail. The gag backfires though and the siblings soon find themselves on the run from a psychotic murderer, out for revenge.The creepy dude from 'Silence Of The Lambs' (Ted Levine) is the chilling voice on the CB. His voice is unmistakable and because the viewer never gets to see his face he really added to the freaky element for me. Actually I'm not even sure if its that he was so good or I'm still traumatized from his performance in Lambs.I also enjoyed Steve Zahn, usually the comedy sidekick roles annoy me but he was really good. Leelee Sobieski is mostly eye candy here, girl needs a bra too because I could not take my eyes off her boobs and I'm not even into that kind of thing, but they were right there. 1/15/15
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