Blacktop (2000 TV Movie) User Reviews

He'll do anything for love

[movieman_kev · 6/10 · 12 November 2003]

Meatloaf (or as his friends call him, Meat) is a bad mother trucker in this thriller. After a comedian (Lochlyn Munro) and his girlfriend ("Sex and the City" actress Kristen Davis) have a fight, she hitches a ride with Meatloaf. Bad idea, missy. Pretty solid action flick that only starts to collapse under it's own weight towards the end. Just don't look for logic & you're have a good time.

My Grade: C+

Where I saw it: HBO Zone

Eye Candy: Kristen in a bra

Dumb as a stone

[Merely · 4/10 · 20 October 2000]

If you're in the market for a stupid story, that has pretty much been done before ever so much better, have a looksie. Really dumb plot with dreadful acting, characters we don't care about, and a been there/done that ending. The suspense isn't enough to hold it together. Hold WHAT together??? Only thing you should hold is your breath....it stinks.

One Truck Drtiver opinion

[ehrldawg · 4/10 · 23 May 2011]

During a lovers quarrel,a woman hitches a ride with a truck driver.

Another film where the truck driver is a psycho. This movie is crap. I will admit to two cool attributes. 1).They have some cool camera shots of Goliath. 2).Munro finally catches up to Meatloaf. In his ragtop,Munro tries to pass Goliath. But Meatloaf puts Goliath into a jacknife. So now,a jacknife 53' trailer is chasing the ragtop. I giggle every time I see it.

Meatloaf drives the Peterbuilt 18 wheeler.

This is the second time ,in a separate film, he has driven a big truck.

Meatloaf is a permanent A+ list actor.

Kristin Davis,Victoria Pratt, and Amanda Tapping are hot!!

erldwgstruckermovies.com

Sex And The Highway

[ray-280 · 3/10 · 13 September 2005]

For a "bad" movie, this one is surprisingly watchable. The script is laughable, but the stars are decent actors (George "Meat Loaf" Aday and Kristin Davis give far better efforts than the script warrants). The rest of the casting is horrid, and the script is from hunger, but who doesn't like a good psycho-killer/woman-in-distress flick every now and then? My respect for Kristin Davis went through the roof after watching this film because many other actresses would have thumbed their nose at this script rather than taking it seriously, and that's about as professional an approach to one's work as one can get. I get the impression that if Kristin were working at McDonald's she'd convince you that she was happy with the job.

As for the plot: a traveling, B-list stand-up comic and his girlfriend (Davis) break up because he won't commit to marrying her (the idiot). She leaves him, and hops into the truck of Aday's character (who looks more like the product of five "Meatloafs Aday"). He protects her from rowdies at a bar in a gruesome way that foreshadows who the real danger is, and the rest of the movie seems to be a cross between "Black Dog" and "Scream" (the latter in that the killer views killing as almost a form of self-exploration).

Watch this film at least once, and maybe you'll like it enough to flick it on every now and then. I'm sure it'll be on cable for the next 1,000 years or so, as they seem to love this type of film.

Bad. That's all. Just bad.

[Apollyon_Crash · 2/10 · 19 December 2003]

This film is *another* basic rip-off of "Duel", and suffers from everything that "Duel" rip-offs shouldn't suffer from. Bad acting (with the exception of Meat Loaf), pseudo-artsy ego-trip directing, pathetic attempts at psychology, story elements that make no sense (what exactly is the point of Victoria Pratt's character?), and really dopey dialogue.

There are two positive aspects to this movie: impressive stunt driving and Meat Loaf, who riffs wickedly through the entire movie in a fruitless attempt to make it watchable. You have to give him credit for trying.

In the end, this movie is nothing more than a waste of a 1959 Edsel...and time.

2/10

Nothing New At All

[samhu · 3/10 · 24 April 2002]

Same old story, okay acting, passable filmmaking, tired climax. Mainly for Meatloaf fans (yes, the man is a fair actor). Overlook the plot holes, jaded characters, indestructible automobile, goofs and you have a movie that you might watch through to the end, if you are laid up in bed, and the remote is broken.

Forget reality and enjoy.

[ktmphd · 7/10 · 21 October 2000]

It is obvious that you are not to expect reality from this film. How many truckers ride a rig with nothing in the back but a kitchen & freezer for their kill? How many live for picking up stangers & killing them and yet are will known among their trucking field? How many decide to pick up a woman, bait her fellow and then play it out as if their were no such thing as the law and how many fools such as the hero would play this game without the police assisting them?

Regardless, if you forget about the inconsistencies and overlook the obvious, this is a remarkably enjoyable film. It has a girl in distress, a villain, a hero, and a girl who wants to help the hero. The girl in distress turns out to be the hero, the villain turns out to be stupid and suicidal, as he arranges his own demise, the hero turns out to be a hero thanks to his girl and the innocent aid turns up dead.

The movie belongs to Meat Loaf Aday (?). When did he become Aday? Anyway, I have seen him three times in a month. Once in the Outer Limits, the second time in Outside Ozona and the third in this flick and I must say I am beginning to believe this man can act far better than he ever sang. Give this film a look and see if you don't agree.

Needs roadside assistance

[Zontar-2 · 2/10 · 29 January 2005]

Did JOYRIDE ('01) leave you primed for another psycho trucker flick? Try elsewhere. Loco long-hauler Meat Loaf shang-hai's girlfriend of wimpy Lochlyn Munro, whose recovery plan consists of shrieking her name as he tails Mr Loaf in his battered flivver. There hasn't been such a mismatch since Arch Hall Jr battled EEGAH ('62). Most of the slo-mo chase takes place on back roads (saves on shooting permits, I guess) where motels and fillin' stations exist in uninhabited areas (saves on extras!).

For a film helmed by a former stunt and second-unit guy, this is mighty thin on thrills. The plot lacks one credible moment, and aside from some well-placed quips likely ad-libbed by Mr Loaf, the dialogue is insultingly bad. On the plus side, I dug the screwy camera angles, and the gear-grinding soundtrack sports some cool tunes. Bonus: Kristin Davis spends mucho time shirtless, and reduces Meat Loaf to hamburger.

Duel + Breakdown + Black Dog = BlackTop

[drpvonbronte · 26 April 2004]

Duel + Breakdown + Joy Ride + Black Dog = BlackTop

Of course mostly bad elements of Duel, Breakdown and dare I say it Black Dog.

MeatLoaf is overacting, otherwise I would commend him for a job well done.

Lots of teasing, but no actual nudity. This is the kind of film you watch at 430 AM drunk. Suspend logic, disbelief and "Why doesn't he/she just do x, y or z." and you will be fine.

Check out the others first, especially Duel.

Thanks.

Paradise by the dashboard lights of the semi? NOT!

[moviedude1 · 6/10 · 14 July 2003]

This is the third or fourth film I've seen with Meatloaf Aday playing a character. I was not a fan of his acting in his videos, and I still feel the same way when it comes to full length feature films. But the guy can sing, and I am a fan of his in that respect, so my admiration follows him to the screen, where, once again, he is driving a large vehicle with just as big an ego behind the wheel (same as he was in "BLACK DOG").

But this time, he plays a psychopathic trucker with "issues" left to be dealt with. And Kristin Davis gets caught in the middle when she has a fight with boyfriend Lochlyn Munro, getting picked up as a hitch hiker by Aday, not knowing what she's traded up (or down) for.

This film had a little suspense in it, but I wasn't on the edge of the couch, waiting for the next event to happen, but I was intrigued, nonetheless. The characters were developed to the point where I knew where Aday's character defects lay, but it is an almost systematic plot that was really predictable. I scored a 6 on this film, but I think I was being generous just for the fact that Aday was the star.

Could have been very good.

[poolandrews · 4/10 · 2 February 2008]

Blacktop starts at the roadside Blacktop diner where David (Lochlyn Munro) is freelancing as a comedian, his girlfriend Sylvia (Kristin Davis) is unhappy about their erratic lifestyle & demands a commitment from David which he is unwilling to give. In a rage Sylvia decides to leave & accepts a lift from a trucker named Jack (Meat Loaf Aday) who is in fact some sort of serial killer & marriage guidance counsellor all in one, he kidnaps Sylvia & leaves clues for David in a game of death that will prove David's commitment & love for Sylvia or get them both killed...

This Canadian production was co-written, co-produced & directed by T.J. Scott & one has to say that it starts off reasonably well enough & sets up a potentially interesting story but does nothing with it & descends into complete predictable tedium. At first glance Blacktop just doesn't sound that promising on paper, I mean a film staring Meat Loaf as a psychotic trucker set alarm bells off in my head, I thought 'whoa there this sounds terrible' & I suppose it is but just not as terrible as I had expected. The script by Scott & Kevin Lund has the Meat Loaf character as some sort of psychotic marriage guidance counsellor which is just plain odd, apparently he goes around in his big black truck picking up girls who have had rows or arguments with their boyfriends & leaving clues for the boyfriend to follow him & fight to get her back in order for them to realise how much they love them. It's a bizarre storyline which I just can't really see working in reality, certainly not on a regular basis. Then there's the bodies that Meat Loaf keeps in the refrigerated part of his trailer which are never explained. Who are these people, is Meat Loaf a cannibal? Why is he keeping them in his truck? The basic question of whether Meat Loaf is a murdering psychopathic cannibal or just a good natured guy trying to make people see how much they really care for each other is never really answered & I couldn't help but feel that it should have been. The David & Sylvia character's are quite well fleshed out & you certainly stick with the film to begin with because of that & the whole 'is Meat loaf a psycho' question but the film goes nowhere, it becomes extremely repetitive with the same thing happening & at the end of the day is there anyone out there who doesn't think that David will save Sylvia? So in all with a better final two thirds in which the story actually goes somewhere Blacktop could have been good but unfortunately it isn't so it isn't.

Director Scott was going for a thriller feel rather than an out and out horror, in fact I'd struggle to call Blacktop a horror film at all. There's certainly nothing I would call scary, Meat Loaf never really turns into some Leatherface psycho at any point & there's barely a drop of blood in it. In a bar brawl scene Meat Loaf slices a guy's ear off with a knife & throws it into his beer but otherwise there's no blood or gore at all, in fact if you were to remove that very scene Blacktop would maybe pass as a PG. There are a few half decent car stunts but nothing spectacular.

With a fairly healthy sounding budget of about $3,500,000 Blacktop is well made but not overly memorable. The acting is alright, Meat Loaf is OK who has appeared in another film playing a big truck driver called Black Dog (1998) while Kristin Davis is probably better known for her role in Sex and the City (1998 - 2004).

Blacktop had potential but doesn't do anything with it & ends up being a rather poor film, it tries but just doesn't succeed & I think it's as simple & straight forward as that.

One wild ride!

[hoffman-8 · 10/10 · 23 October 2000]

For anyone not familiar with Meat Loaf, the actor, Blacktop is a movie that will introduce you to one of the most talented and versatile performers around today. This is a movie that proves that people are not always what they seem. And remember the warnings about not accepting rides from strangers? Listen and be afraid!

For the Meat Loaf fan this is a real treat - a leading role! The sharp-eyed fan will spot some of the characteristics of a few stage performance characters in Jack. Meat's ability to merge and intertwine his many characters are what give his roles a 3-dimensional human reality and what make him a superb performer in any arena.

If you like suspense, drama, and tongue-in-cheek humor you will like this movie, it's got them all.

I Don't Like The Way You're Playing My Game

[JakeRfilmfreak · 7/10 · 16 January 2024]

Blacktop is a 2000 thriller that stars Lochlyn Munro and Kristin Davis as a couple whose rocky relationship gets tested after she accepts a ride from a deranged truck driver.

There are a lot of made for TV films out there that are not worth watching, but this is actually a really good movie. The cast does a great job with Meatloaf standing out and giving a really good performance as Jack the trucker. The story itself isn't completely creative, but with solid characters behind it and some pretty decent action the story plays out well. There are moments in the film that make you want to roll your eyes, but there are also moments that are quite gripping.

I saw this movie many years ago and have always thought it was a decent movie. If you haven't seen it before, it's definitely worth checking out at least once.

not bad

[garry_k · 5/10 · 28 September 2005]

Ignoring the other review and watching this movie was a good choice. Yes, the acting could have been better but I've seen worse. e.g. Friday the 13th, Chucky, Bill and Ted's excellent adventure, but that didn't stop them from being watched by the millions of fans. It has a basically good plot and keeps you watching. Meatloaf is a pretty cool bad guy and is believable, so he is a multi-talented performer. The other two need a bit more talent, but didn't destroy it, so I think it was worth watching, just don't expect any Oscar performances. What is chilling is the fact that this sort of stuff happens with alarming regularity in real life.

it's definitely going to be a bumpy ride.

[wafflemaker · 5/10 · 31 March 2003]

Not exactly the best film around. In fact, I'd say Blacktop was far from it. But it had its endearing moments. And with the presence of two of my favorite (not to mention HOT) actresses, it's often easy to forget about the cheesy dialogue and ridiculous situations and just go with things. Meatloaf's ranting psychotic moments are among the better parts of his performance and it's nice to finally see the damsel in distress fight back. Kristin Davis does well, despite the cheesy dialogue and some of the sappier points of the film. And the fact that she has her shirt off for at least a good 20 minutes, more than makes up for most of the lamer parts of the film. The only thing better than Kristin Davis is Victoria Pratt's role as cowgirl, Charlie. She's fun and full of energy and helps breath life back into the story just when the thing really starts to die. So while it's not the best movie around, it's worth taking a look at at least once. If only for the ladies and the re-enforcing message of 'Don't accept rides from strangers.'

Cars in Movies-1959 Edsel

[myedsel · 20 September 2006]

There wasn't any mention of the Edsel in the previous comments, so I'll try to clue you in. This is a great movie if you like Edsels, the real star was the 1959 Edsel!

Meat Loaf as Jack does a great job as the heavy, really scary! However, the best scenes are when David is chasing the bigrig Peterbuilt that Jack's driving, in his old 1959 Edsel, (this was the car Ford built in 1958 to fill the gap in their line-up to catch up with General Motors}. It was a ill-fated and well documented attempt. World know as FORD'S "FLOP"

If you liked DUEL with Dennis Weaver, you'll love this one. The hero drives a much more interesting car.

The hero wins in the end, thats the Edsel of course! for more about Edsels visit my Edsel group at autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/edselmail/

More gas doc!

[housey-198-744932 · 1/10 · 1 August 2018]

I awoke from anaesthesia following surgery to see this movie playing on the ward TV. Would've had more enjoyment had I stayed under another 100 minutes. It has cars and bras, and trucks and old singers with food names. It has guns and shootings and stuff. But it's a bigger mess than my surgical bandages. Gas us up doc; this is doin' my head in!!!

Here's the problem .....

[merklekranz · 5/10 · 6 February 2014]

Here's the problem. Obviously almost everyone involved with this movie has carefully studied the far better film "Breakdown". The ending especially seems ripped right out of that movie. The plot to "Blacktop" is nothing more than a simplified, dumbed down, trucker kidnapping an innocent. Unfortunately "Blacktop" also suffers from a bad case of boring dialog. For miles on end this is no better than the relationship primers that play on "Lifetime". The stunt work is definitely the best part of "Blacktop", which doesn't say much for the acting or script. For example, when a guy cuts off another guys ear, you would have to think the police might get involved? Probably wasn't in the budget. - MERK

if you're a fan of meat loaf...

[shawshank86 · 7/10 · 15 February 2007]

this one could have been great, if it were given to a talented writer. don't get me wrong, i love lower budget movies; some of the all-time greats are by roger coreman, but the only reason i made it through was the fact that i am a die hard meat loaf fan. he really is an underrated actor, and he does a pretty good job executing in this one, as he does in his other roles, but the writing was just so bad. the story line is decent, the moral is good and i like the ending because it's not traditional for this type of message. i just think that the dialogue killed the movie for most of the viewers. hopefully someday we'll be blessed with a movie where meat is given a leading role so more people will see his abilities other than us super fans who memorize his albums.

One Hell Of A Ride

[gummersam · 10/10 · 1 February 2006]

Amazing road movie, the story reminds me of such films as Roadkill and Duel (1977, Steven Spielberg) The scene where Meatloaf is going to shoot the girl, but then the mounted police come along and you can see all the dead bodies in the back of the truck is very suspenseful. The ending is absolutely amazing and when the boy finds his girlfriend and Meatloaf has disappeared gets you right on the edge of your seat, and (Warning spoiler:)Meatloaf's death is indeed very gruesome, the bit where the boy takes the shortcut out by the gas station through the woods when the guy at the gas station is lying on the floor dead is very violent as the guy was so 'hacked' up on the floor, and the acting of the boys shock in that scene is amazing, the same as the rest of this film. A must for your collection if you can get hold of it!!!! See this if you like Duel, Roadkill, Jeepers Creepers, The Hitcher, and Wrong Turn. 10/10 Fantastic!!!!

Meat Loaf's vehicle

[davidn-2 · 28 April 2002]

Pun intended ;-)

Meat Loaf shines as a psychopathic relationship counsellor in this slightly-above-average thriller.

The point isnt the storyline or the flawed plot (goodness knows there's a number of holes). It is delivering a suspenseful thriller, and T J Scott delivers.

A more climactic ending would have made this film more enjoyable.

*spoiler ahead* eg (although it's been done before) have Jack escape from the rig before it went over for a shot at Dave, face-to-face.