| "Evil waits, with the motor running.” |
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Wheels of Terror
VHS/APPROX. 86 MINS/1990/USA R18+
VHS/APPROX. 86 MINS/1990/USA R18+
7.5
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Wheels of Terror is a TV movie directed by Christopher Cain (Young Guns), but it has B-movie written all over it. So, I’m gonna review this as the
latter and not the former because really, what kind of film is entitled Wheels of Terror? My point exactly.
This film predates Tarantino’s Death Proof by some 17 years, and the reason I bring that up is because both films have so much in common. So, if
you liked Death Proof you’re gonna lap this bastard right up.
Joanna Cassidy moves to a small town with her daughter and takes on a job as a local school bus driver. The townsfolk are proud that their little
safe haven has few, if any, violent or sexual crimes. But, that’s about to change. A grubby black sedan with tinted windows is terrorizing the
streets and abducting young girls. When they’re eventually turned loose, medical examinations indicate that they’ve been sexually abused. One
girl even winds up dead. So, it’s up to Cassidy to put an end to the anonymous driver’s fiendish ways.
Apart from signifying the obvious, that is, don’t ever talk to strangers, this little known film has a lot going for it. Let’s begin with the car. I’m not
sure what year or model the car is but man is it sinister. It’s one of those sleek Vanishing Point-esque sports sedans, only here its spray painted
black and it’s dirtier than a motherfucker. Add to that the blackest of tints and you’ve got the perfect child molesting vehicle.
Christopher Cain does an exceptional job of building tension and suspense, and the fact that he never reveals the driver – and I mean NEVER –
means that you’re deprived of every single right you have as a spectator. I was so into this as a B-movie that initially I felt cheated. I was furious
for all of 3 minutes when I suddenly pulled my head in and thought; it’s a lot freakier that I don’t know who it is. This casts an ominous shadow
over everything in the film – a technique employed by none other than Steven Spielberg in his 1971 cult made-for-TV-film, Duel.
Cain handles the action and chase sequences masterfully, and while he’s heavy-handed with the slow-mo, this is still a cracking
horror/action/thriller film. It’s also about 15 minutes too long, but that’s because Cain tries to achieve poetry with an extended Peckinpah-esque
car chase involving Cassidy’s school bus and the sedan of the main title.
This is an excellent companion piece to other B-graders like Death Proof and Duel, so don’t be put off just because it’s made-for-TV fare.
latter and not the former because really, what kind of film is entitled Wheels of Terror? My point exactly.
This film predates Tarantino’s Death Proof by some 17 years, and the reason I bring that up is because both films have so much in common. So, if
you liked Death Proof you’re gonna lap this bastard right up.
Joanna Cassidy moves to a small town with her daughter and takes on a job as a local school bus driver. The townsfolk are proud that their little
safe haven has few, if any, violent or sexual crimes. But, that’s about to change. A grubby black sedan with tinted windows is terrorizing the
streets and abducting young girls. When they’re eventually turned loose, medical examinations indicate that they’ve been sexually abused. One
girl even winds up dead. So, it’s up to Cassidy to put an end to the anonymous driver’s fiendish ways.
Apart from signifying the obvious, that is, don’t ever talk to strangers, this little known film has a lot going for it. Let’s begin with the car. I’m not
sure what year or model the car is but man is it sinister. It’s one of those sleek Vanishing Point-esque sports sedans, only here its spray painted
black and it’s dirtier than a motherfucker. Add to that the blackest of tints and you’ve got the perfect child molesting vehicle.
Christopher Cain does an exceptional job of building tension and suspense, and the fact that he never reveals the driver – and I mean NEVER –
means that you’re deprived of every single right you have as a spectator. I was so into this as a B-movie that initially I felt cheated. I was furious
for all of 3 minutes when I suddenly pulled my head in and thought; it’s a lot freakier that I don’t know who it is. This casts an ominous shadow
over everything in the film – a technique employed by none other than Steven Spielberg in his 1971 cult made-for-TV-film, Duel.
Cain handles the action and chase sequences masterfully, and while he’s heavy-handed with the slow-mo, this is still a cracking
horror/action/thriller film. It’s also about 15 minutes too long, but that’s because Cain tries to achieve poetry with an extended Peckinpah-esque
car chase involving Cassidy’s school bus and the sedan of the main title.
This is an excellent companion piece to other B-graders like Death Proof and Duel, so don’t be put off just because it’s made-for-TV fare.
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