Review by Peter Syslo
REST STOP (2006) was a bizarre yet interesting film. It didn’t make a whole lot of sense and I did feel like the director was pulling pranks on me, but I have to say that I really liked the film. You see, this movie is one of those “meta-films” which plays with the stereotypical elements of a specific sub-genre. Other “meta-films” include: SCREAM, BEHIND THE MASK, MIDNIGHT MOVIE, CABIN FEVER and 2001 MANIACS – just to name a few. That being said, REST STOP is a type of film that you have to “get” in order to enjoy it. You have to be a fan of the subgenre that it is playing with (the stranger-in-a-strange-land story) and you have to recognize its very dry sense of humor. This film isn’t for everyone, but it does have some very positive elements which actually make it better than some of the other, more “serious” films about inbred, mountain-man killers.
REST STOP is written and directed by John Shiban. The film stars Jaimie Alexander, Joey Mendicino, Deanna Russo, Diane Salinger, Curtis Taylor, and Joseph Lawrence as the motorcycle officer.
The film can best be described with this line: JEEPERS CREEPERS! Don’t take the WRONG TURN or we’ll experience DELIVERANCE into THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE. In other words, a young woman named Nicole (Alexander) and her boyfriend (Mendicino) are running away from home, when a crazy guy in a truck starts playing “road games” with them. The two stop at a nearby rest stop, in Northern California , because Nicole has to use the facilities. When she comes out, she realizes that her boyfriend and his car are gone. From this point on, she tries to figure out what happened and along the way, she encounters a few murder victims, a motor home full of bible-thumpers, a kind-hearted police officer, and the crazy killer-guy in the pick-up truck.
Well, I thought that it was a fun movie that played with all of the stereotypical elements of these types of films. You have the defiant young adults driving to California - you just know that they are going to encounter trouble. Actually, I was glad that the a-hole boyfriend was dispensed with, early-on in the movie (I wouldn’t be able to take him for the full 90 minutes). The picture is basically a single-set film, taking place all at the rest stop, but somehow the director and camera crew made it very interesting. The rest stop does have a life all its own and the interspersion of reality and ghostly memories kept things fresh and well-paced. Like THE CHRISTMAS TALE, this is also an ambiguous film, which does keep you guessing and does make you think. I am still wondering what exactly happened, but strangely, it didn’t need to make sense. I enjoyed REST STOP regardless of the logic of it.
I am going to correct myself, because I just realized that this movie plays with the haunting sub-genre and the torture/slasher sub-genre, as well. So, to recap, it is a “stranger-in-a-strange-land” film, a ghost story, and a torture/slasher film. Again, somehow the director worked all of these things together and it kept me entertained. It is a mystery which has no decisive answer but you do get bits and pieces here and there. Nicole spends a lot of time in the ladies’ room, seeing scribblings on the stall door, which suggest that the killer has been “at it” since the 1970s. Also, she sees “visions” of his past victims, who describe the experience of the killer taking them back to “the school bus” where he drills into their legs and so forth (Yes, the film does get a bit bloody and gory). One of the best parts of the film was when Nicole encountered the motorcycle officer (Lawrence). He was trying to help her and he meets such a terrible end – you feel bad for the guy. But, there is a bit of humor in his death scene; Nicole is directly responsible for his death, but she kind of screws things up. It’s one of those scenes where you laugh and say, “oh man, that’s bad”. However, it is another instance of playing with sub-genre stereotypes.
Gnawing through the flesh: I really liked this film. There is a “method to the madness” and it does make you think. I didn’t feel a great deal of resolution at the end, but I admit, the overall ride was a fun one. Regarding the acting, Jaimie Alexander was really good in the film, as was Joseph Lawrence; I enjoyed both of their performances. The look, mannerisms, and “aura” of the killer were very satisfying – mysterious, yet relatable. Also, I loved the fact that they didn’t show the killer totally – that was very effective and it is the method that I prefer in slasher films (if you see the killer in full view, early-on, it kind of ruins the power of a scary film). To make a long story short, REST STOP is definitely a film that is geared towards a certain kind of audience. If you like some of the films that I mentioned above, then you might like it. If you aren’t really a fan of horror and its sub-genres, then you may hate it. But, I still think that it is worth watching. I give it an 8/10.