The Fearway review – Groundhog Day road horror is a real highway to hell
This lumpy, tedious horror thriller teases a big mystery as to what’s really going on for a couple who keep finding themselves back on the same stretch of highway no matter which direction they drive off in. Unfortunately, the reveal at the end is the second most hackneyed plot twist in film history. (Hint: it’s the one that isn’t “it was all a dream”.) The best way not to break your brain trying to guess is just not watch this nonsense at all.
Those who persist in ignoring this warning will be subjected to an attenuated campfire-style spooky story that starts with young lovers Sarah (Shannon Dalonzo, the marginally more competent actor of the two) and Michael (Justin Gordon) driving along the stretch of Route 66 that, judging by the cactus-like vegetation, is just near Joshua Tree national park. In the real world, this is a relatively active stretch of highway near Palm Springs, but the film-makers must have shooed everyone off for long enough chunks of time to make it look eerily empty. Sarah and Michael natter boringly away about their upcoming nuptials, seemingly in a fruitless effort to make us like and root for them before it all kicks off.
Then they seem to hit something in the road, but can’t find whatever it was, or any signs of damage to the car. They then notice they are being followed by someone in a muscle car who turns out to be a demonic-looking character with sharpened teeth, somewhat problematically played by the only actor of colour in the cast (Briahn Auguillard). The folks at a nearby diner offer to help, but there’s nothing they can do about the poor mobile phone reception, or the lack of quarters for the pay phone. Something doesn’t seem right there either, especially the shifty, inexplicably English-accented manager (Simon Phillips). The craziest thing is that Sarah and Michael seem to be driving in circles, coming back to the diner no matter what they do.
Perhaps it’s all meant to be a metaphor for the insipid sameness of American roadside culture, but it’s doubtful that director Robert Gajic and writer Noah Bessey are trying to be subtle. In any case, this film is duller than desert ditchwater, and is well worth driving away from, at speed.
The Fearway is available now on digital platforms.