Sub-Genre: Suspense, Thriller
U.S. Release Date: October 17, 2006 (Straight to DVD)
Running Length: 80 min / 85 min (unrated version)
MPAA Classification: R (strong violence and gore, language and some sexuality)
Cast: Jaimie Alexander, Joey Mendicino, Nick Orefice, Deanna Russo, Joseph Lawrence
Director: John Shiban
Screenplay: John Shiban
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Rest Stop marks the full-length movie directorial debut of John Shiban. Previously, he worked as a staff writer for the tv show The X-Files, and more recently Supernatural. The plot is simple and has been employed in countless other films. A young couple on their way to California make a pit-stop at a remote highway rest area. When the female lead, "Nicole" exits the unkept and nauseating restroom, she finds that her boyfriend (and the car) is missing. She quickly finds out that a mysterious driver of a yellow truck is responsible for his abduction. The remainder of the film is a game of cat-and-mouse between the "The Driver", played by Nick Orefice, and "Nicole", played by Jaime Alexander. Again, this plot has been used in countless other films and it has nothing new to offer from a story-telling standpoint.
The movie quickly dropped from a "C" grade, to a "D" upon the introduction of a clueless cop, played by Joey "Whoa!" Lawrence. Now I'm of the opinion that all child-actors should be given the opportunity to break free from typecasting. This was his chance, and he blew it...big time. Rarely have I seen such an unconvincing performance from an actor, and it seems like he could care less that it was bad. However, the poor dialogue contained in the script didn't help his cause any, and there was one scene in particular that was supposed to be scary (I guess) but will likely be found ridiculous to most people.
For no apparent reason, Shiban (who also wrote the script) introduces a family of derranged bible thumpers. Their role in the film remains a mystery, and I can only guess that they were written into the script because the film wasn't creepy enough on its own.
On a kinder note, Jaimie Alexander gives a fairly good acting performance when the dialogue in the script gave her decent lines. Also, there are a couple good scenes of gore (done by Jamie Kelman) that keeps this movie from becoming a total loss.
Unfortunately, these redeeming qualities were drowned out by a script was riddled with plot-holes, inconsistencies, and several questions left unanswered. (For most movies, when they make you say "WTF?" at the end it isn't a good thing.)
Movie goers who really get into films like Duel or The Hitcher (and wouldn't mind seeing a poorly made rip-off of the two), might enjoy this film. But I'm guessing most will wish they would have kept the DVD on the video store shelf.
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