Review of Joy Ride (2012) by Tyler B — 18 Dec 2007

Joy Ride.

2001.

Action (Thriller).

Rated: R.

Running Time: 97 minutes.

Starring: Paul Walker, Steve Zahn, Leelee Sobieski.

Directed by: John Dahl.

Rating: 4 out of 10.

Outline.

After playing a prank on an unknown truck driver that goes horribly wrong the Thomas brothers Lewis (Walker) and Fuller (Zahn) find themselves in a fight for their very lives.

Review.

This movie is inappropriately titled Joy Ride but it is anything but a joy ride watching it. The suspense which is almost non existent is only brought on in little doses by improbable scenarios. The casting of Paul Walker and Steve Zahn was alright because they did have the chemistry down as estranged brothers but that�s as far as the believability goes. The story seems to get weaker and weaker through out the film and the introduction of Leelee Sobieski�s character was lame as it was not important to the film. Zahn is all over the place and is funny in a couple of spots which leads me to believe he should only stick to comedy. Paul Walker provides us with another example of he has the look people want but doesn�t have the substance. This coupled with a trucker that is superhuman in his ability to be everywhere at once, kidnap people, expert at rigging up intricate death scenario�s, and finally kill people with crazy force and then carry bodies for hundreds of miles with out being caught. He has the ability to do all this while staying with in five miles of Walker and Zahn�s characters. Yes some leeway needs to be given in movies such as these but it gets to a point where it is way too much. Yes this movie has a couple of cool scenes like one involving a guy in a destroyed ice truck and a shotgun scene towards the end but for the most part this movie is trying way too hard to deliver. The best part of the movie had to be the trucker's creepy voice but that in itself is not enough to save a movie.The ending was also quite lame and it sums up the ridiculousness of this over the top film. There are way better done suspense movies out there this one should be approached with extreme caution I guess in the same way you would use C.B. radios after watching this film.

T Factor + Didn�t mind the superhuman trucker as much as I did then this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor � Found Steve Zahn�s character too stupid for a movie like this then this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: The Hitcher, Highwaymen.