User reviews

The idea of this movie is actually pretty good; two teenagers do a prank call on a CB radio, but the prank turns on them. Most teenagers have probably been in a situation where they themselves made a prank call. At the very least, everyone knows about it. The film has some excellent shocks throughout the movie, and all of the 'thrilling' sequences are very intense, sometimes bordering on the extreme. The plot is pretty good, even pretty original, as far as I know. The acting is good enough. The characters are believable and their actions are understandable, most of the time. The movie has some very good cinematography and some pretty good cinematic effects. The ending, though a bit far-fetched, was the perfect way to end it, in my opinion. I couldn't have imagined a better way to end it. I recommend this to pretty much any teen who enjoys thrillers, especially the ones who like to relate to the theme and plot. Nearly every teenager in the world can in some way relate to at least one of the main characters in this film. 7/10

Relatively a lesser known film which apparently spawned a few straight to video sequels. Joy Ride is a decent thriller with some suspense, although quite predictable at times.

The film moves at a reasonable pace and doesn't drag on too much.

The violence isn't gory or graphic and is quite tame for a film of this genre.

One of the highlights of the film is most definitely the character of the villain trucker "Rusty Nail". Although we don't necessarily see him much (only briefly near the end and for a quick few seconds), it's his voice which strengthens the performance.

Questionable scenes are regarding Rusty are how well he knew the friends. How he knew the roommate and was able to kidnap her. How he was able to pick back up the radio device and put it in their trunk. Nothing was exactly explained in the end.

Paul Walker and Steve Zahn bring in solid performance showing a fun level of chemistry.

Overall Joy Ride is a solid early 2000's teen/young adult type mystery thriller type. Yet expected a little more. It is relatively simplistic and somewhat forgettable.

It would be very easy to overlook 'Roadkill' (the title 'Joy Ride' is known by here in Australia), especially considering the leads are mainly known for asinine teen movies. But dig a little deeper and you will see that it is directed by the underrated John Dahl, also responsible for the crackerjack thriller 'Red Rock West' a decade ago. Paul Walker ('The Skulls') is very effective as your average joe college kid, and Steve Zahn ('Out Of Sight') is even better as his smart ass older brother. Zahn is a talented comic often better than the movies he appears in, and he is in fine form here. The chemistry between the two is believable and amusing without becoming tired. Leelee Sobieski ('Eyes Wide Shut') has yet to make much of an impact on me, and there's very little to change that here. She is passable but little more than eye candy as Walker's potential love interest. The real star of the movie is the mysterious and frightening trucker Rusty Nail ('The Silence Of The Lambs' Ted Levine). Of course the whole scenario is hugely indebted to Spielberg's suspense classic 'Duel', but Dahl and co. manage to put a fresh and exiting spin on familiar material. 'Roadkill' won't change your life, but it is a genuinely exciting and effective thriller, a real rarity in Hollywood these days. Hitchcock it ain't but it's a very entertaining popcorn movie with plenty of thrills and twists. Recommended.

This turned out to be one the few movies I liked that was geared toward a teen audience. Steve Zahn and Paul Walker weren't natural in the roles as brothers, which embodied the very nature of their relationship. While the story became rather convoluted near the end, Rusty Nail's voice and detached presence brought some actual fear to the heart of the viewer. While the sound editing made this film, the relatively simple yet complex plot really turned this film into a satisfying movie experience.

In "Joy Ride", two brothers (Zhan & Walker) get involved with a big rig driver over the CB radio while on the open road. They set him up as a practical joke and unleash all hell on themselves as the unseen subject of their prank, known only as "Rusty Nail", turns out to be a maniacal killer. "Joy Ride" is a well crafted thriller which methodically builds suspense while avoiding the usual gore and guts of horror flicks. With only a few plot holes, this thriller should keep most on the edge of their seats. Worth a look especially for those who enjoyed "Duel" (circa 1971) which is now circulating on cable.

After KILL ME AGAIN and RED ROCK WEST director Dahl has again made a nice good-looking, really thrilling little B-movie! He must have watched DUEL (which is still better, maybe the best S. Spielberg movie ever, and rates 10/10) and has added something here and there. The Trauma Spielberg handled in his movie is not to be found in here, but it's still and nevertheless a highly enjoyable, also well photographed movie with believable actors and a nice twisted ending (improbable, yes, but still nice). Whereas in DUEL one just had the man (Dennis Weaver is his best movie) and a truck (without the driver ever to be seen), Dahl added more characters and a more visible (actually audible) driver + police, etc, but the basic plot, people running away from mad truck/driver, is left intact. I just wish more such movies would still be made today ...

Who does not think of this movie every time they pass a roadhog on the highway? How could you possibly not think of this? Like the woman from T2 who asks them if they want fries with their burgers. The tail light scene is priceless. Great chases, great suspense, only until the chick shows up does it start to lull and get boring but Rusty Nail is never far behind with his pink champagne. And of course, Ted Levine as the trucker's voice is unique as we all know. Dad used to watch it when he was alive. He loved it. Sad about Paul Walker. But yeah, nothing to really say except its a good movie and you think of it without fail every time you pass or a roadhog passes you.

"Joy Ride" is an extremely entertaining road-set horror/thriller that was surprisingly quite good. The film is about Lewis (Paul Walker), a college coed who decides to buy himself a car and take off across the desert to pick up a would-be-girlfriend, Venna (Leelee Sobieski) in Colorado for a road trip together. He then learns that his older troubled brother, Fuller (Steve Zahn) has been arrested in Salt Lake City, so he picks him up on the way. After having a CB radio installed into the car, the two take off to pick up Venna, but end up pulling a prank on an anonymous trucker who goes by the name of "Rusty Nail" (excellently voiced by Ted Levine) on the CB radio. After the trucker learns about the prank, he attacks the brothers with his large semi, but they manage to escape. But soon after they pick up Venna, the menacing truck driver begins harassing them again, seeking revenge for the joke they decided to play on him - he'll stop at nothing to get it, and he's looking for more than an apology.

Reminiscent of "The Hitcher" in quite a few ways, but also a much different film, "Joy Ride" was a surprise for me. I was expecting something along the lines of your typical teenage-horror fare, and I was pleasantly surprised with this intelligent and heart-pounding little thriller of a film. To start off, the story in itself is very nicely written and manages to avoid clichés. The characters in this film are smart, and the audience is rooting for them the entire way through. There are some excellently orchestrated thrill sequences, one of them being the really intense chase through the cornfield, among others, and these scenes are sure to get you on the edge of your seat.

Tension builds slowly during the first 40 minutes or so, and from there it just goes rampant. The cast is led by Paul Walker, who hasn't accomplished anything too amazing, but manages to lead the film well and play his character believably. Steve Zahn in his quirky and funny older brother, and plays the part suitably. Leelee Sobieski plays the intuitive girl-next-door friend who ends up along for the ride, and she also gives a worthy performance. The psycho-trucker villain of the film is very scary, never really seen - we get to know him through the frightening conversations on the CB radio, where he makes numerous threats and has many disturbing confrontations with the group of friends. Ted Levine, who played the notorious Buffalo Bill in "The Silence of the Lambs" voices the psychopath, and his voice itself is creepy enough, and adds to the villain's overall demeanor. The ending was excellent, and I loved how ominous it was. I really didn't see it coming, and it concluded on a very unnerving note.

Overall, "Joy Ride" is a superior action-filled horror/thriller that came as a big surprise to me. It was intelligent, tense, scary, and very well-written, which was nice because of my semi-low (no pun intended) expectations going into it. People who enjoyed "The Hitcher" will more than likely also enjoy this road trip from hell. Very well done and worth seeing for both horror and thriller fans alike. 8/10.

I loved watching Joyride. That's my kind of movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat. I highly recommend watching it, especially at night.

This could have gone horribly wrong. Reading the synopsis I was expecting a generic slasher movie, but this had a killer script getting things going fast and thrilling

Half movie is dull, second half is better. This is Paul Walker's movie from his earlier days, he looks teenager ( 18 years ago now in 2019). Two brothers gone on ride and making some kind of joke that pretending voice of a girl to unknown driver on car radio while highway run, but unfortunately joke is turned into a psycho killers' trap. Along with them their girlfriends also being involved in. Climax is interesting but end is not perfect. It seems uncompleted or having another sequel. Acting side is just okay. Steve Zahn is better than Paul Walker. If you are road rash or car/truck chasing lovers the you must see 'Duel' movie (1971) directed by Steven Spielberg. It is best movie on same subject. Must watch it for get real highway thrill and avoid this one.

I thought it a good popcorn thriller. Suspenseful, and lots of action. I'm no film critic or anything, but I was entertained by this and that's all that matters to me. Plus, I'm secretly in love with Leelee. Marry me!

It's got plenty of suspense, and as long as you're not looking for anything too deep, this will satisfy you. I have the idea that the original review posted was by someone who prefers a more chilling horror movie, which I do not. This is pure entertainment with a scary element thrown in.

I highly respect Steve Zahn as an actor, and Paul Walker isn't bad either. The "unknown" rig driver is properly menacing, and I can completely suspend disbelief and place myself in either of these actors' roles (more likely Walker's role as he originally goes with the prank and then thinks otherwise when the prank starts to get into the "iffy" category but his buddy eggs him on).

Like I said, pop yourself some popcorn, don't expect a deep and mind-bending thriller, turn the lights off and cozy up with your guy or girl and enjoy a satisfyingly entertaining movie with a solid storyline that will not give you nightmares.

Cheers :)

It is not a bad movie. It has enough excitement to make you sit it out. It's just another copy of same old, same old. The dialogues are pretty poor in my opinion, I can't remember enjoying one line in particular. The idea is old, done routinely. Guys pull a prank on some dude, a trucker in this flick, and the prankee is 'not amused'. The entire film is about the main characters being chased. No great special effects, no great acting, no great music score, no great nothin'. The sideline about the brother in prison is useless in my opinion, it serves no purpose. Television stuff. And yes, there is a possibility Joy Ride II will see the light.

With a friend's recommendation, I was invited to see this film. Granted, it looked like another silly horror/stalker flick from the previews way back when, but I kept an open mind as I sat down to watch this latest suspense/thriller.

While it wasn't spectacular, I did have some fun with it.

I think that came from the fact that the leads were enjoyable, and there were some entertaining and funny moments throughout all of "Rusty Nail's" stalking. It's the timeless story of two kids driving cross-country, and why it's not a good idea to mess with people too much. It's also a good lesson in that when one gets busted for something like this, it's not a good idea to tell the recipient of the practical joke what an idiot they are for falling for the gag.

What we're left with is an angry truck driver who remarkably has more leads and connections on these kids that the Psychic Friends Network could only dream of having. Therein lay the problem for me. "Rusty Nail" knew remarkably too much about these characters, and I kept wondering why is it that he never had to report in to anybody, like his bosses for example. Don't truck drivers have to keep a schedule, and aren't some trucker agencies going to be more than a little unhappy if these schedules aren't met? I don't know of too many truck drivers who have the luxury of postponing their deliveries to go chase a few practical joking kids all over the country for a few days. Maybe that's a benefits package I simply haven't heard of.

Regardless, some of the scenes were entertaining (the fate of the ice truck early in the film comes to mind), there were funny moments, a decent tense spot or two, and given the circumstances and how far one is willing to just sit back and relax with the movie, some of the situations concocted managed to work. I'm just very glad they chose not to use some of the DVD's alternate endings. They had "Rusty Nail" come off as more of the Terminator in terms of endurance.

It's a fun movie to sit around with friends and talk about. Take that as such, and don't try to figure out the plot holes.

this is not a excellent movie,it has a pretty good plot about a college student that decides to take a cross country road trip to pick up his girlfriend,along the way he decides to bail his trouble making brother out of jail,his trouble making brother decides to put a CB radio in the car to have a little fun they play a prank on this lonesome trucker named rusty nail,but the prank backfires with some shocking results,now the trucker (rusy nail) is out for vengeance he wants one of them to pay with their life.this movie is entertaining from the beginning to the end,it has you guessing which one of the characters is gonna die,but there's this one thing I find interesting how is it possible to stalk someone in a tractor trailer? like i said a lot of movies are badly scripted.

It is crazy how underrated this movie is. It is one of the best thrillers I have ever seen. It is an excellent movie. I highly recommend it. I feel nervous every time I watch the movie.

Paul Walker picks up his brother Steve Zahn from jail and they end up pranking a truck driver named Rusty Nail, he finds out, they reveal it was a prank, he doesn't take it too well, and mayhem ensues.

The performances are great across the board but my guy Ted Levine's voice role is terrifying. He makes this movie terrifying. The tension is crazy throughout.

Check this movie out. I'm a little mixed on the ending, but I will let you all decide for yourselves. Be well.

Stephen Spielberg's debut film 'Duel', about a man who inadvertently offends a truck driver, is still one his best, leaner than most of his subsequent work and none the worse for it. More than thirty years later comes John Dahl's 'Rodakill', a film occupying very similar territory, but in no way superior to its predecessor. Dahl is actually quite good at handling the action scenes, but his film is a bit cruder, a bit more over-the-top, and a considerably less plausible than Spielberg's masterpiece (the truck, for example, seems to have a tighter turning circle than a running human!) 'Roadkill' is still possessed of a certain gut power; but less, in the case of this comparison, is definitely more.

This was a dumb movie. That the plot springs from a CB radio should have been a tip-off. Do you know anybody who uses a CB radio these days? You probably won't know anybody as dumb as the guys in this movie, either, because if you ever came across anybody like them, you would have run. They do dumb things, and then dumber things. You're just saying, "Oh, no," all the way through it.

The movie IS suspenseful so if that is what you are after, it won't disappoint there. Just don't ask too many questions like, "How did she get here, or how would he have known that." Suspend logic.

Lewis (Paul Walker) decides to drive across the country to see Venna, a friend who doesn't know that Lewis is interested in her romantically. However on the way he gets saddled with his chaotic older brother, Fuller (Steve Zahn), who has just got out of jail and whose on-the-road pranks get the brothers and Venna sucked into a nightmare when a psychopathic truck driver takes offense at one of their pranks.

When it first starts this film very much has a feel of a TV matinee to it. However it's not long before a little tension creeps in between the two brothers. Friction is created by Fuller's raw attitude especially when talking about Lewis' friend, Venna. After fitting a CB radio into their car they pull a prank on a seemingly lonely trucker, and chaos starts to ramp up.

I love how the tension rises notch by notch. Each scene leads progressively to the next and Zahn and Walker, and later Sobieski, help to crank the tension little by little til you realise you're sitting with gripped hands. I can't believe this film is now over 20 years old and still as exciting as the day it was released. You would barely believe it's not a Hollywood big budget movie but JJ Abrams was sure making his mark producing this all those years ago.

All of the cast did really well even though Fulller's character is slightly comical. The story is OK and the mystery trucker is very menacing despite simply talking quietly the whole time. If you want a very decent thriller you can't ask for much better even though it is slightly dated. I gave it a solid 7.

What an uninspired, unoriginal, unimaginative, improvised truck load of ca ca this movie is.

Maybe spoilers: This movie is little more than ever cliché you can image: the "jock" teeny bopper, his idiotic prank playing brother, and "jock"'s sexy would be girlfriend all being stalked and hunted by an unseen truck driver, after a prank that got out of hand. The killer seems to be everywhere, but no one can see him driving his EIGHT - TEEN WHEELER while he is stalking them. Yeah, sure.

The first half hour of the movie is just padding involving the jailbound loser brother, nothing happens at all. Then even when they finally pick up the girlfriend, there's more padding involving the three of them hanging around socializing. Then when the killer finally reappears, there's just a lot more running around, chases, car crashed, bad jokes, completely implausible set ups etc.

A lot of running around but though nothing happens.

The killer painting instructions on a SERIES of highway signs- yeah, now that's believable too. How did the killer know which way these little pricks were going to be driving?

The killer retrieving the CB radio after they throw it out the window onto the highway and putting it in there car without them noticing- that's not too unbelievable either.

The killer driving his 18 wheeler following them to a college and kidnapping their girlfriend's roommate- almost makes the last two statements believable.

Then after all that running around the killer turns out to be NOBODY. That's right, the killer's identity is never revealed. The filmmakers think that if they set it up for a sequel, nobody will mind that the movie makes absolutely no sense, that everything will just be explained in the sequel. Hopefully there never will be one.

Leelee is cute, but she can't carry this tired, cliché ridden disaster.