We continue our celebration of frights with Joy Ride from 2001. It’s summer break, and college freshman Lewis Thomas has decided to embark on a cross-country road trip to pick up the girl of his dreams, Venna. But Lewis’s romantic hopes hit a detour when he stops on the way to rescue his older brother, Fuller, who pushes him into playing a practical joke on a lonely trucker over a CB radio. Now, that trucker, an unseen and terrifying force known only by his CB handle “Rusty Nail,” wants the last laugh and revenge.
The road trip scene of horror is an underrated one in itself, and Joy Ride is one of the best movies in that genre. Even if it isn’t talked about as much as it should be. Never prank people on the road. Road Rage is a real thing, and you never know who you may be messing with.
What makes this movie scary is how much tension there is. You are on the edge of your seat the entire time. You also realize how dangerous the threat is very quickly. When Lewis and Fuller prank the truck driver, they send him to a hotel room that isn’t there. In the morning, they find out that the man staying in that hotel room was brutally murdered. This leads to the truck driver starting out on his revenge. There is no reasoning with him. There is no apologizing. He just wants payback.
The movie is legit scary at times because our main characters don’t really know what our villain looks like. There are scenes when they don’t even know if they are in the same location as him because all they know is his truck and his voice. The film also does a great job at building characters first. Some of the best horror movies do this. We get to care about the brothers first, which is important. There is also some good comedy in the script at times that cuts into the suspense nicely.
The Performances
We lost Paul Walker way too soon. In just about every role he played, he was always insanely likable. In this movie, it is more of the same. Steve Zahn as the brother is great at being a loose cannon. You still end up rooting for him, though, because of how good their chemistry is as well as the script. Ted Levine is perfectly cast as the voice of Rusty Nail, the truck driver. You may know him as Buffalo Bill from The Silence of the Lambs. He comes off as very creepy and intimidating,
Joy Ride is a movie that many should check out if they love horror/thrillers. It is suspenseful from beginning to end, and it is so much fun.
Joy Ride is available to watch on Amazon Prime.
Join us tomorrow for another spooky review.
