Customer Reviews

Route 666

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Just as entertaining as the 2nd time - still great when "pop" comes across to save his son.
Enjoyed the humor - and the acted characters.
Bought it because of Lou Diamond Philips as I enjoy his acting.
Will watch again [in time] - must be enjoyed for what it is and not for what you expect.
Some gross blood letting but in keeping with the story.
Just a little harry-scarry but beautiful color scenery [if you like the desert]
Definitely recommend for easy enjoyment -- not for children.

It's been something like 14 years since William Wesley made an impressive debut with the atmospheric and creepy horror film Scarecrows (DVD please!). In waiting so long to make a follow up did the writer/dirctor hope to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump? Well, if that was his intention, the man failed, utterly. Route 666 is pretty much a disappointment for anyone expecting a tight and fun thrill ride.

Federal Agents Lou Diamond Phillips and Lori Petty capture escaped witness Steven Williams. Just before their back-up arrives a posse of hitman show up and start firing. Here Wesley shows his big artistic contribution to the film, he wiggles the camera up and down and back forth in an irritating manner so the viewer can't see how lackluster the action is. The trio escapes, a sole surviving hitman in pursuit, and, in a bad decision, the group decides to take a short cut along Route 666, a condemned/deserted highway that was closed down due to a chaingang accident that, in a contrivance that gets the eyes rolling, happens to be linked to Phillips character's family history. It is not too long before the chaingang's ghost zombies (the movie can't decided which they are so they are both) show up and begin pounding victims into the pavement. The road needs blood, you see.

On the plus side the movie does feature a great b-movie cast (legendary character actors Dick Miller and L.Q. Jones get to join in on the fun) and the movie is polished and professional looking. Steven Williams shows some comic relief skills (and gets a great in-joke for his stint as Mr. X on The X-Files). On the downside the script is atrocious (the graveside exposition is a low point worth mentioning) and the characters behavior largely decided by the action instead of vice versa (why do the bad guys show up and begin shooting people needlessly when they have no reason and nothing whatsoever to gain by doing so? Because they are BAD guys and that is what BAD guys do!) and WHY is L.Q. Jones wearing sunglasses indoors while reading a book? Did he get his pupils dilated during the shoot or something?

Final thought? Route 666 is a disappointment, granted an entertaining one, but, considering what this director is capable of, one not worth more than the price of a rental.

Well, here's another "Lion's Gate Special", meaning a fairly decent low-budget horror flick that was released with no fanfare and the DVD has next to no extras. I only watched it as it was on TV one Saturday afternoon - liked it so much I had to buy it.
When WILL Lion's Gate get it together?

That being said, "Route 666" stars Lou Diamond Philips, Lori Petty, Steven Williams ("Mr. X" on "The X-Files") and Dale Midkiff ("Pet Sematary"). It's a weird little chiller about a group of Federal Marshals (led by Philips) hauling a reluctant member of the Witness Protection Program (Williams) to testify in LA against his mobster bosses (who are, of course, after his ass as well). Everyone ends up on Route 66 but, due to a series of circumstances, have to take the long-closed Route 666 (there really WAS a Route 666 once) as it's a short-cut to LA and to avoid the hitmen. BUT, there's something "strange" about the lonely desert road which leads to a series of bizarre deaths, vengeance for some eerie zombie-like characters lurking on (or is it under?) the road, a traitorous sheriff and Steven Williams who has some of the BEST, most hilarious lines for a horror movie.

"Route 666" isn't the greatest horror movie in the world but, for a low-budget flick, I thought it was worth the purchase price. And it DID have some chilling moments for me and isn't that the bottom line with horror movies?

SEE:
*Lou Diamond Phillips drink peyote tea with a bald shaman
*See Steven Williams do his Joe Pesci Lethal Weapon impersonation AND pee three times
*See Dale Midkiff the Human Ham in a terrifically campy performace
*See zombies from the chain gang swing their pick and jam their jackhammer
*See Steven Williams smash a nasty scorpion
*See L. Q. Jones play the crooked sheriff for the 100th time
*See Lou's Dad help his son out when he needs him most
Actually, I have tongue in cheek, but ROUTE 666 is a pretty enjoyable, if sometimes ludicrous, horror thriller. The actors for the most part are sincere, and the muddled pacing doesn't destroy the movie. The jerky camera movements get a little old, however. Not a turkey, but maybe a little pheasant?

Route 666 is a very enjoyable captivating film. It has a good cast, decent story, and an interesting style. Agents Lou Dimond Philips and Lori Petty have to go and track down a federal witnesss who is on the run ( Steven Williams). Then they must get him to court on time to testify. To do this they and four other agents decide to take a supposedly haunted route 666, were a chain gang accident had happend. Through the movie we find out more about it through cool, but bizarre flash backs. Philips is entertaining in his lead role. As is Petty and Williams who are both enjoyable and very funny. It's a very underrated flick that is worth having in your collecton for a rainy day. A must buy.

This was a great film. I enjoy films like this as they are just a fun ride. 90 minutes makes for a perfect timed film that leaves the viewer with a smile. Funny, scary and an all around great cast provides for a nice release from the average "We-are-here-to-scare-you "B" movie. Well worth the purchase price!!

Route 666 is one of those films we've caught a few times now, but haven't seen it all the way through until now. It stars Lou Diamond Phillips "Riiiiiitchie!", Lori Petty, and Shaft's cousin Steven Williams(whose one of those guys you know you've seen in a bunch of stuff before, but just can't remember what.) Now Lou Diamond is a very good actor but has also done quite a bit of good b in his days. This one is no exception. It's a nice little b horror straight out of 2001, just past Sid's favorite decade for b but still in a good range.

The film takes place in the desert whic is always a reciepe for some solid b when it comes to horror. Jack La Roca (Lou) and his partner Steph (Petty) are escorting Shaft's brother across the desert trying to save him from being wacked. His in the witness protection program and decided to flee sending some gumbas to come looking for him. Luckily Ritchie Valens came to bring him to safety only to run into a pack of ghost/zombie street toughs. There's no way to bring these things down so they are a pretty scary bunch. Eventually the mighty Jack La Roca was there to figure out a way to put an end to the gang, look at the scoreboard it choas.

For our first Lou Diamond entry we have to say it was a successful one. The film is really entertaining with the perfect amount of b sprinkled in. The cast were surely d list and the zombie gang was really interesting looking. They were like a bunch of stone looking zombie's that lived under the road, only coming out when they here people above. That's pretty scary f you ask Sid. We can honestly recommend Route 666 for a good b horror watch, and assure you that it would've been enjoyed years ago.

I was hoping that this would be a campy, scary ride. I was sorely disappointed. It's nonsensical and stupid. Lou Diamond Phillips and Lori Petty as crack FBI agents (!?!) pull Steven Williams out an assassination attempt and decide to flee across the closed highway of the title to get him to LA to testify against some random mobsters. Why they do this pretty much defies logic; I mean, the state doesn't just decide to close highways for no reason, people. Does it ever occur to them that the road might be, oh, say washed out? Impassible? Nope. They mention that the road is dangerous (well since it's supposed to be a highway, but it's about as wide as you average suburban driveway, I bet it is pretty dangerous. Unless it was meant for interstate moped travel), knock down the barriers and barrel on down the road. Leaving those barriers conveniently down for the assassins to follow. Hey, why not just paint a sign- "They went that'a'way!"

Of course, on the road, the tires on their cars melt, so they'll have to hoof it. To Los Angeles. In the desert. All the better so that they can be attacked by the blood-thirsty (and hopelessly comical looking) zombies that haunt the road. You see, route 666 is haunted by the death of four of the chain-gang who constructed it, who died a mysterious death. Well, it will be mysterious to anyone who had never seen a movie before, or read a book. Or been out of the house. In any case, the road needs blood to survive, and we are told "somebody always bleeds" Must be a lot of skinned knees on the moped expressway. So, we are treated to a lot of extras being pounded into the pavement (in what can only be called Jerk-O-Vision) while the Karo syrup flies. Do I need to tell you that there's a corrupt sheriff involved? That one of the zombies is related to one of our heroes? That Lori Petty is about as believable as a crack FBI agent as, well as Lou Diamond Phillips is? All of this is wrapped up about 90 minutes later with a big confrontation involving an imaginary steamroller, some fake blood, and The Redemptive Power of Love™.

Pass this one.

Lou Diamond Philips is a better actor than this film and I will never understand WHY Hollywood doesn't give him better roles.

He made this film BETTER because of his acting in spite of the script so I give it a 4. I have seen it on cable at least 3 times and enjoyed it all 3 times. This film wasn't meant for the Oscars but for fun and enjoyment. In the end the bad guys die and the good guys win. A good ole fashioned American ending.

I love this movie. It was a great horror flick, with what I thought was a good creative plot. The monsters in this movie were also well developed defenitally A quality. But sadly since this movie from what I saw didn't have any real big name actors or actress's I have to give it 4 stars. In fact the only actor in this flick who I even remember playing in another movie was Lou "Diamond" Phillips. I think he played in the TBS original motion picture "Red Water". But either way I thought all the actors and actress's still did a good job in this film.