Taglines: Don’t screw with people you don’t know.
Joy Ride movie storyline. After forays into film noir, thrillers, dramas, and even documentaries, director John Dahl tries the teen horror genre on for size. Paul Walker stars as Lewis Thomas, a college freshman embarking on a cross-country road trip during summer break to pick up his girlfriend Venna (Leelee Sobieski).
Along for the ride is Lewis’ brother Fuller (Steve Zahn), a practical joker who uses the car’s CB radio to play a cruel prank on a lonely trucker known only by the handle Rusty Nail. The victim of Fuller’s gag turns out to be a psychotic murderer and soon the brothers are being pursued by the relentless stalker, who gets his revenge in gruesome fashion. Joy Ride, which co-stars Matthew Kimbrough, was produced under the working title “Squelch.”
Joy Ride is a 2001 American horror thriller film directed by John Dahl and written by J. J. Abrams and Clay Tarver. The film stars Steve Zahn, Paul Walker, Leelee Sobieski, Jessica Bowman, Stuart Stone, Basil Wallace, Mary Wickliffe, Rachel Singer, Michael McCleery and Kenneth White.
Joy Ride opened theatrically on October 5, 2001 in 2,497 venues and earned $7,347,259 in its opening weekend, ranking number five in the domestic box office. By the end of its run, the film had grossed $21,974,919 domestically and $14,667,919 overseas for a worldwide total of $36,642,838.
About the Story
The film follows after three university students and friends going out to a ride on the highway and eventually coming into a terrfying conflict with a mysterious yet murderous truck driver. University students Lewis Thomas (Paul Walker) and Venna Wilcox (Leelee Sobieski), Lewis’s childhood friend and crush, prepare to go home for the summer holiday. Lewis offers to come by Venna’s campus (they go to different universities) to drive her home instead of both of them flying back; Venna happily agrees.
After refunding his plane ticket to buy a 1971 Chrysler Newport, Lewis calls his parents to announce the change of plan and learns that his older brother Fuller (Steve Zahn), the family’s black sheep, has been arrested once again. Lewis drives to Salt Lake City and bails out Fuller, who then tags along for the trip.
At a gas station, Fuller has a CB radio installed on Lewis’s car for $40, and the two begin listening in on truckers’ chatter. Fuller coaxes Lewis into playing a prank on a truck driver nicknamed ‘Rusty Nail’ (voiced by Ted Levine (uncredited)). Lewis pretends to be a woman named Candy Cane and sets up a meeting with Rusty Nail in the motel where Lewis and Fuller will be spending the night. Lewis tells Rusty that “she” is in room 17, the room of an irritable businessman with whom Fuller had earlier argued, but the guys are actually in room 18.
When Rusty Nail arrives at the man’s room, an argument and sounds of a scuffle are briefly heard. The next morning, Sheriff Ritter announces to Lewis and Fuller that they found the businessman on the highway, still alive with his lower jaw ripped off. Ritter figures out the two are involved in the incident but lets them go, as he already has his hands full, and they don’t know anything other than the man’s nickname. However, he orders them to leave the state by sundown.
On the road, Rusty Nail is heard again on the CB radio looking for Candy Cane. Lewis talks to him and reveals that he is Candy Cane. Rusty Nail demands an apology, but Fuller insults him instead. Rusty Nail simply notes that they should get their taillight fixed, indicating that he is right behind them, causing the duo to panic and speed up. At the next gas station, they unsuccessfully attempt to contact Ritter.
Seeing an ice truck pulling into the gas station, the already paranoid pair drive away. The ice truck driver chases them down. However, it turns out the driver is merely trying to return Lewis’s credit card, which he left behind in panic. The real Rusty Nail then shows up in his truck and crushes the ice truck and its driver. He then slowly pins Lewis’s car against a tree. The two hysterically apologize, and Rusty Nail drives away, declaring his actions to be simply a retaliatory joke.
Believing themselves safe, the brothers arrive at the University of Colorado and pick up Venna. They stop at a motel and drink at a bar. Lewis goes to sleep, but Rusty Nail calls him, revealing he knows of Venna. The three flee the motel. Rusty Nail contacts them, announcing that he has kidnapped Charlotte, Venna’s friend. He directs them to a cornfield, where he gets them to split up, and kidnaps Venna.
Joy Ride (2001)
Directed by: John Dahl
Starring: Steve Zahn, Paul Walker, Leelee Sobieski, Jessica Bowman, Stuart Stone, Basil Wallace, Mary Wickliffe, Rachel Singer, Michael McCleery, Kenneth White
Screenplay by: Clay Tarver, Jeffrey Abrams
Production Design by: Robert Pearson
Cinematography by: Jeff Jur
Costume Design by: Terry Dresbach
Set Decoration by: Beth DeSort
Art Direction by: Michael Rizzo
Music by: Marco Beltrami, Buck Sanders
MPAA Rating: R for violence / terror and language.
Ristributed by: 20th Century Fox
Release Date: October 5, 2001
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