Terror Overload: Tales from Satan’s Truck Stop (2009, Review)
Directors: Brant Johnson, Kevin Myhre, Jason Stephenson
Cast: Rachel Grubb, Scarlet Salem, Joe Knetter, Nicole Kruex, Ari Lehman
R-Squared Films / Not Rated / NTSC Region 1 / 16×9 Widescreen / Color / 83 Minutes / PURCHASE
Usually when more than one director becomes intimately involved with a project, that project more than likely turns to a stinking pile of donkey shit. I’m not speaking of when a series of sequels starts to wander off the line with directors; I’m talking about when a solitary film has two to three directors. When that happens, you can guarantee yourself a painstaking abomination of a film. A few exceptions rise from the ashes of those who crashed and burned in this particular situation. For example, the 2007 technology terror The Signal was widely praised and still is one of the best movies of that year even if the ending did fall a bit flat on it’s face. The Signal’s three segments, though obviously different from the three directors whom directed them, did mesh together with smooth transition and poise. The reason I bring up multi-director films leads me to the film I am reviewing - Terror Overload. The movie drives itself directly into being a sham of an anthology. Easily, one of the worst anthologies of of the year, possibly the decade – right up there with Creepshow 3. Nothing unique jumps right out as each of the stories are just as odd and just as bizarre.
When party goer Debbie is caught stranded on an isolated stretch of road, a strange truck driver lends her a ride into town. In the midst of their travel and to fight against boredom, the truck driver tells three of his grisliest stories to help past the time. But what Debbie doesn’t know is that the truck driver goes by the name of “Devil Driver”, a serial killer who preys on stranded women, and Debbie soon will find out that she is in for the ride for her life!
The most bothersome quality of Terror Overload lies with the ho-hum twists and humor. The Devil Driver portion and each other story segment really didn’t bring anything to the table that we haven’t seen before. I’ve had nightmares about Carebears and Gummy Worms more frightening than these stories. The first story entitled “Dinner Date” introduces us to a couple’s first at the man’s house. One of them turns out to be a psychopathic cannibal and likes to feed/eat the victim’s remains – not very original, wouldn’t you say? As for the humor, most of my brain cells probably committed merciful suicide – a smart move if you ask me. “Mongo Chupa” separates from the pack by being the only hybrid comedy-horror story of the terrible trinity. Even the story title suggests an idiotic play on words about an incestuous family who fucks for money, each other and a Chupacabra. All of which was a very small, itty bitty bit entertaining, but so dumbed-down to the level of shit like Epic Movie that I thought my eyes would literally implode with intense reviewer remorse.
I hate to seem wishy-washy about my stance on films, but there are “good” portions that interested me. The biggest name attached to the project is Ari Lehman (Friday the 13th anyone?) and he was convinced to take part in “Mongo Chupa” as a sister humping redneck. His 15 or so minutes of screen as “Ray Rae” could have been the entire movie. Also, scream queens Scarlet Salem and Rachel Grubb, whom by the way has a role in every….single….story, have no problem baring it all to aid in the story’s telling. Though we wish Roger Ebert would spread his magic words and give two thumbs up for every movie with tits and gory bits, we all know damn well that most movies with said attributes are far from fantastic. Terror Overload is more than far from fantastic; it is beyond savable. We are no more overloaded on terror than we are overloaded on sugar from eating a plain bloody rare steak with no fat. But you don’t have to take my trustworthy word for it; check Terror Overload for yourself and see what you think as DVD hits retail stores everyone on May 11 courtesy of R-Squared Films’ Big Bite Entertainment label.
