Masters of Horror (TV Series) Incident on and Off a Mountain Road (2005) User Reviews

A Decent Start To This Excellent Series

[Witchfinder-General-666 · 7/10 · 24 July 2007]

I have, as probably many fans of the great genre of Horror, become a big fan of the "Masters Of Horror" series. A series of 1-hour features by well-known horror directors, including such names as Dario Argento, John Carpenter and Takashi Miike, just has to be a treat for a fan of the genre. This first episode, "Incident On And Off A Mountain Road" by Don Coscarelli (Phantasm) is a decent and highly entertaining, although not astonishing opener to this great series.

When a young woman (Bree Turner) has a car accident on a mountain road in the middle of nowhere, she is suddenly attacked by a psychopathic creep. Luckily for her, her husband, a gun-loving survival enthusiast, has taught her quite something about kicking attackers' asses...

"Incident On And Off A Mountain Road" is by far not one of the best MoH episodes I've seen so far, but it is certainly a decent opener to the series. The story itself is far from original, but the episode is well directed, very creepy, gory and demented, and highly atmospheric. Bree Turner fits very well in the lead, and each one of the other actors also delivers a good performance. Recommended!

Not too bad...

[Kia_Tee · 7/10 · 22 December 2006]

I must say I very much enjoyed this episode. Angus scrimm and Ethan Embry were both a delight in their roles. Though she seemed to struggle from time to time, the female lead was still able to hold her own, though in the future others may be hesitant to cast her as a lead. The scare factor was great and suspense was always there from start to finish. The director has an excellent talent of being unpredictable, which he executed with the greatest of ease. Just as you think everything is okay, WHAM! Something hits you again. The end of this film left me with my mouth hanging open, followed by a smile of delight. Wonderful start to the season.

Allow me to Disagree with the Majority

[gavin6942 · 7/10 · 28 November 2006]

A young woman, Ellen (Bree Turner) hits a parked car on a mountain road and stumbles across a serial killer. With a survivor's instinct, she decides to fight back. Also, we gets glimpses of her past relationship with Bruce (Ethan Embry).

I skimmed a few reviews of this film, and the same words keep popping up: "predictable" and "derivative". Even my friend Jason, whom I respect as a master of horror, had warned me the film was quite predictable. Please allow me to address this with regards to "Incident on and off a Mountain Road".

Is it derivative to have a woman chased through the woods by a killer? Yes. Was the film predictable? For the most part, yes (though I was not entirely sure till the end which predictable ending they'd run with). But as someone who has seen more than his share of horror films, aren't most horror films derivative and predictable? You see one slasher, you've seen them all. And don't tell me you can't predict who will and won't survive after the first ten minutes? (Hint: the minority always dies first, the young female lead survives.) The point is this: you have to take the predictable and derivative, and put a new spin on it or do it as skillfully as possible, like no on else has done. This film accomplished that goal, which impressed me since I've seen the director's "Beastmaster" and would not say that it really stands out as movie genius.

The opening scene had me hooked: Don Coscarelli uses very tight shots of a dark road. Close-ups on Ellen's face, focusing on her eye. A hood's view of the road (rather than wide shot) to give us the impression of being trapped in the car. Obviously, I knew that something or someone was about to be hit, but I also knew with the angles used there was no way I could escape being right in the impact. If you've been in a serious accident, you don't want to relive it.

Also, the killer's lair was great. Sure, we often find abandoned shacks with corpses in horror films, but the police sirens and lights were a nice touch. Did he kill the cops? Was it a taunting, letting his victims know there was no escape? I really enjoyed that. And the drill press... so much more frightening than a hand drill.

Bree Turner was great as Ellen. Her past roles have apparently been all comedies, but she showed here she was more than capable of being a strong heroine in a tense role. And, personally, I want to say Bree Turner is one of the most beautiful women ever to appear in a horror film since the dawn of time. Strong, smart and attractive... the very perfect example of a "final girl".

I found Ethan Embry (best known for "Can't Hardly Wait") a little out of place, but he showed he could be dark and menacing and maybe I ought to give him some credit. I couldn't stop thinking "gee, he really looks like crap... he's gotten all pudgy and bald", but if I looked past that I might have found a good actor. Maybe. After listening to the commentary, I was able to better appreciate how seriously Embry took the role, allowing himself to actually be strangled and stabbed to get the part right. That's dedication.

Angus Scrimm was amazing. I have seen Coscarelli's "Phantasm", so I have seen Scrimm play "The Tall Man"... probably his best-known role for horror fans. (If someone wants to call blasphemy on me for not seeing the sequels, call it... I'm in the process of fixing this.) I did see Scrimm in "Satanic" and that role was so pointless, it could have been played by anyone old or young, male or female (see separate review). But here, oh my, he was such a well-devised character that I don't think anyone else could have given this film what he was able to do.

I have no complaints about this movie, other than wondering about Moonface's origin. He seems to have a very talented dentist and a unique knife dealer. But obviously the time simply did not permit that story to be told... maybe a flashback in a future season of "Masters of Horror". This episode, I'm pleased to say, was one of my favorites of Season One, and I'm glad they kicked off the show with it. Maybe I stand alone on that, but that's a chance I'm willing to take.

Praise the Lord for the fast-forward button!

[fedor8 · 1 June 2009]

"You can survive anything". Anything except a dumb horror flick. The director couldn't even decide whether he wanted a demon or just a plain ol' backwoods serial killer. You can't have both. It's like Michael Moore trying to have his cake and eat it too (or in his case 1500 cakes) by making his particular charlatan brand of "docu-comedies": they're supposed to be oh-so hilarious and zany, and yet you're also meant to treat them as truth-based, earth-shattering, hard-hitting documentaries. Some genres cannot be mixed.

"Anything can happen to anyone, any time, any place." (Translation: this is the horror genre, so we can do any kind of nonsense we want.) This sounds not so much like something "wise" found on a paper of a Chinese fortune cookie, but more like the credo of every bad horror film director. We get this baloney of a statement served to us early on, sort of as a preparation/justification of the absurd buffoonery to come.

"My phone isn't working!" Well, of course it isn't. There is a far greater chance that Sean Penn's brain starts working (after decades of catatonic apathy) than that a horror-film cell-phone does. The single most dreary and predictable horror cliché of the past decade. Why even say it? We KNOW help will never come via a phone-call, so ye horror-making dimwits might as well just not even mention it. The last 50 horror films I saw use this plot device. It's becoming embarrassing.

"You always have to expect the unexpected." The final twist was rather surprising, I'll give them that much... However, plenty of nonsense on the way there.

Check out the elaborate traps the heroine sets up with the speed of a drugged-up lab rat - in the cold, wet, and almost totally dark conditions. I just love horror-film realism...

When a blood-thirsty demon starts trying to be funny (by "shshshing" his victims) then you know your horror-viewing pleasure is in doubt. The less said about the old geezer "cracking wise", the better... Another stupid cliché served by a tired, lazy, uninspired director.

What are the odds of being attacked by your husband and then by an eye-hating demon - on the same day? "Expect the unexpected". They might as well have squeezed in an event in which she survives a plane crash, and then another in which she encounters aliens who tried to anal-probe her...

The fast-forward button needs a temple or a shrine built in its image.

Meh

[timhayes-1 · 6/10 · 24 May 2006]

As far as Masters of Horror goes, there have been better episodes that could have kickstarted the series than this one. The plot is a standard stalk and slash thriller, which seems odd coming from the man who gave us Phantasm and Bubba Ho-Tep. This is really new territory for him and as such it is certainly better than most of its brethren, but still far from the genius one comes to expect of Coscarelli. Granted, the killer is a gruesomely twisted vision and Angus Scrimm delivers a truly kooky performance but none of this really makes a difference in the long run as we get a chase through the mountains juxtaposed with scenes of the heroine and her abusive survivalist husband. All in all, this is a real letdown from the Coscarelli.

Golly jeepers, where did you get those peepers?

[Jonny_Numb · 6/10 · 28 May 2006]

From what I've seen of the series thus far, I think I know the central problem with "Masters of Horror": all of the directors (save series creator Mick Garris) are more familiar with theatrical film-making; as a result of restricting them to a 60-minute timeframe, their efforts come off feeling underdeveloped. Such is the case with Don Coscarelli's 'Incident on and Off a Mountain Road,' which scores scores high on the ambition scale (as it interweaves 2 story lines with relative success), but feels like a generally toned-down thrill ride. Inspired by the Joe R. Lansdale short story, 'Incident' tells the tale of Ellen (Bree Turner), who is involved in an accident and is accosted by towering mutant 'Moonface' (John De Santis), who drills the eyes of his victims and transforms them into scarecrows; in the meantime, we get flashbacks to Ellen's turbulent marriage to screw-loose survivalist redneck Bruce (Ethan Embry, miles away from his "Can't Hardly Wait" image). Angus Scrimm (The Tall Man from "Phantasm") makes an effective cameo as one of Moonface's victims. The episode is passable entertainment, but one wishes that Coscarelli would have pushed the extremes a bit further.

Run-of-the-mill slasher fare...

[cgyford · 6/10 · 25 September 2009]

"Phantasm" and "The Beastmaster" director Don Coscarelli adapts genre author Joe R. Lansdale's short story as a somewhat uninspired premiere episode for Mick Garris's exciting new series that demonstrates little promise for the show and none of the genius the writer and director would develop with their later collaboration on "Bubba Ho-Tep".

Bree Turner makes for a cute enough scream queen but fails to generate any sexual chemistry with survival freak Ethan Embry whilst long-term director favourite Angus Scrimm proves a misplaced annoyance and John D. Santis is far too cartoonesque to generate any real fear as the dreadfully monikered Moonface.

The master employs the incredibly overly familiar set-up of an accident on lonely mountain road to lead into a run-of-the-mill slasher in the woods story that quickly degenerates into splat pack style gore soaked torture porn and sadly fails to take its own advice to do the unexpected.

It comes in through your eyes.

Decent enough setup that leads to a disappointing payoff.

[IonicBreezeMachine · 6/10 · 6 October 2021]

On a secluded mountain road, Ellen (Bree Turner) loses control of her vehicle following a commentary distraction causing her to collide with an abandoned car. Checking the surroundings Ellen encounters a deformed albino serial killer named Moonface (John DeSantis) whom she must now elude. Intercut with Ellen's harrowing struggle for survival are flashbacks to her relationship with a crazed survivalist named Bruce (Ethan Embry) and the events that drove her to this point.

The inaugural episode of Mick Harris' Masters of Horror anthology program, Incident On and Off a Mountain Road is directed by Don Coscarelli noted director of The Beastmaster, Bubba Ho-Tep, and the Phantasm series and written by noted writer Joe R. Lansdale and based on Lansdale's short story of the same name. This marks Coscarelli and Lansdale's second collaboration following their previous project, cult horror-comedy Bubba Ho-Tep. While the story is effective, it definitely feels like something that's been stretched from a short story and I wasn't a fan of the resolution.

Bree Turner as Ellen is really good in the lead role of Ellen and sells it both in the present day settings using her acquired survivalist skills to outfox Moonface and also project vulnerability and optimism in the flashback scenes with Ethan Embry's Bruce that are gradually eroded over time and replaced with a hard edged cynicism. Moonface was admittedly not a point I liked, while the make-up is good and DeSantis is clearly giving his all, the character design just comes off as really silly looking with his silver teeth and bright white skin, especially in his introduction shot where he jumps into the air in front of the full moon. While the story is well told, I found a lot of the flashbacks tended to undercut the tension of Moonface stalking Ellen and probably would've preferred a "less is more approach". While I understand the episode had to fill 50 minutes, the episode feels like something that could have gotten away with a 30 minute runtime. I also wasn't a big fan of the ending where the movie almost seems to imply that Ellen has now become similar to Bruce or Moonface and it just kind of makes a head scratching not to go out on.

Incident On and Off a Mountain Road is just okay. It's got a good lead in Bree Turner and some nice intensity and supporting performances, but it's also clearly stretched from a short story and has an ending that I didn't care for. Not peak Don Coscarelli or Joe R. Lansdale, but not an embarrassment either. Very much middle of this "Mountain Road"

Who Ever Said Don Coscarelli's a Genius?!

[myboigie · 8/10 · 4 June 2006]

Yeah, Don Coscarelli, the next Stanley Kubrick--when has this genre director ever been called a "genius"?! Grow-up, Tim. This was great, and definitely an unexpected-turn for Mr. Coscarelli and the Masters of Horror series. It's a very atypical-approach to horror, and I loved it. Selling the story as a damsel-in-distress was a genius-move by Lansdale, Stephen Romano and Don Coscarelli (who added the Angus Scrimm character). The story is pretty-straightforward: a woman smacks into an abandoned-car on a mountain curve on a highway, finding it empty with blood covering the interior. It turns-out the car was bait, and was placed there by a predatory serial-killer (called "Moonface" by one of his captives, the Scrimm character). All-the-while, we are given bits of the girl's backstory: her relationship with her survivalist-boyfriend. It's clear that he's taught her how to not only defend-herself, but to insure her survival in unexpected-situations--how to become a predator. By midpoint, we're aware she's no damsel after-all. She can kill just as easily as Moonface.

It has to be said that there was a point that I began to pity Moonface, but after seeing his crucified-victims over-and-over, that ended. But Coscarelli had me there for a moment! What makes this such good horror is that our loyalties to the characters sometimes shift, and this is sometimes unresolved. We're left feeling ambivalent. There are some freaks out there in America's deepest-corners, and the story had a ring of folklore to it, I liked this. For ages, there have been stories in the Old South of crazies in the mountains, so the story isn't that far-fetched. My maternal-Grandmother grew-up in the Ozarks, and told us of the "Mountain people" who still believed slavery was legal in 1900s America! There were even tales of cannibalism and inbreeding. It all gives the film a bit of a Texas Chiansaw Massacre flavor, with a new-addition to rural crazies in our collective-consciousness.

The boyfriend-backstory is really crucial if you want to understand this story, and until the shocking end, it resonates strongly. Of course, men made the woman's character so violent, but the film begs-the-question: is this violence already there, waiting to be activated under the right-circumstances? The story suggest yes. In one of the featurettes, however, Coscarelli seems to think the young-woman will be "normal" after all of this--I disagree. The close-shots he uses for the eye-drillings by Moonface and by the woman are IDENTICAL, which makes-it-plain that the actions are EQUAL. She has become just like Moonface. It's a minor-complaint, and it's not a contradiction within the film itself, just an aside-comment in an interview with the director.

It's OK if a director doesn't entirely-know what he has, after-all. Cronenberg is the best-example of this, and claims he doesn't entirely- understand his films during their production. Moonface could easily be seen as a distorted-version of the boyfriend in the flashbacks. He's bald, he's VERY white (the boyfriend is an Aryan Nations type), and his focus is on killing. Like the boyfriend, he is a predator to the woman-character. Even Moonface's hideout suggest a survivalist-setting. All of this leads to the surprise-ending that you have to see-to-believe, and it is a very subversive-upending of stereotypes surrounding men and women. Some have argued that woman is the strongest of the species, and I would be hard-pressed to disagree. Women are too-easily underestimated. Remember Aileen Wuronos? The film just has great atmosphere, and some excellent night-photography which is still difficult to get right. I loved the fast-cutting, and how dark the film looks. The image of Moonface is unforgettable, and will probably be remembered for some time in horror-iconography. The long-shots with the yard of crucified-victims was just incredible and chilling, and the chase-scenes are an adrenaline-boost. This is a first for Coscarelli, a film that is primarily a chase, but it works. The Scrimm character, "Buddy" is a really good comedic-relief in the heart of a horrible-situation, and he does the film proud as he usually does. Again, IDT/Anchor Bay have done a superb-job with the transfer and the extras. No complaints here whatsoever. It does what it's supposed-to.

"What happens if crazy doesn't work?"

[classicsoncall · 6/10 · 25 November 2022]

Decent first entry here for a horror anthology series. Of course, I'm late to the party, having never heard of this program, running across it as an offering on one of the streaming channels. It proceeded along the lines of any number of slasher/gore type flicks one would be familiar with in the genre. The unique twist here is that the hunted became the hunter, as the back story for the protagonist Ellen (Bree Turner) depicted how her abusive husband turned her into a survivalist of some merit due to his demanding routine to prevent her from becoming a victim. Taken hostage by a disfigured back woods serial killer, Ellen recalls her training to set up a series of traps and inconveniences for the killer affectionately named Moonface (John DeSantis). The name derived from another surviving hostage at Moonface's cabin, a grizzled old timer (Angus Scrimm) who appears to have remained alive who faked being dead. Although not startlingly original, the story had enough to keep me interested to continue with the series.

Coscarelli is better than this - a disappointing opener

[The_Void · 4/10 · 17 February 2006]

Incident on and off a Mountain Road is Don Coscarelli's entry in Mick Garris' Masters of Horror series. Coscarelli is famous for being the man behind such cult gems as the Phantasm series and the irresistibly weird Bubba Ho-Tep; but he brings none of the qualities that made those films great to this TV episode. The plot is a run of the mill one that follows the routine idea of an innocent being chased by a madman. This time, it's a young woman driving down a mountain road. After a head on crash, she finds herself being stalked by a white faced maniac. The whole chase sequence is really ridiculous, with the young lady stopping every so often to set traps; only for the maniac to show up seconds later, and this is cut with scenes showing her with her husband - who just happens to have a wealth of information on how escape insane killers; with lines such as "expect the unexpected". The only real highlight for me was the presence of Phantasm's Tall Man, Angus Scrimm. Coscarelli tries his best to implement as much horror imagery as possible; with things such as a rotted corpse of a dead baby - but because it's all so silly on the whole, it's difficult to take this piece seriously. This is the first episode in the series, and the first that I've seen; I really hope they get better.

the second best episode of Season 1

[movieman_kev · 8/10 · 16 February 2006]

Director Don Coscarelli (Phantasm, Beastmaster, Bubba Ho-Tep) set the bar high with the first episode to be shown. While this tale adapted by the great though sadly relatively unsung author, Joe R. Lansdale, about a strong willed woman surviving a car accident that leads her to a unfortunate encounter with a vicious serial killer with the moniker of "Moonface" is not that original. It more than makes up for it with sheer tension. Pretty much a breathtaking chase sequence for much of the duration of the show (barring a few flashbacks), this episode was a sheer delight for me as a horror fan and made me crave the other episodes all the more. All the actors were spot on, with the amazingly great Angus Scrimm as an obvious stand-out.

panic at the mountain!

[Fernando-Rodrigues · 7/10 · 21 November 2020]

And THAT'S how you start a series. and also, how you destroy it's potential. this episode could've been way smarter, but it falls on the clichés (Ellen has plenty of time to make her traps in the woods, the girl Moonface attacked before Ellen returns to the woods instead of running away - just to die. -, Ellen just realizes she had a nail file on her shoulder at the climax -I mean, how could she??-, there's thunder and lightning all the time, and it never rains, etc, etc...). Yet, it's one of the best episodes.

Silly, gory, trippy and very promising opener to the "Masters of Horror"-series!

[Coventry · 7/10 · 22 April 2006]

The first installment of the much-anticipated series "Masters of Horror" certainly wasn't a disappointment, although the script hardly looks like the work of a "master". Any second-rate horror scriptwriter during the 1980's could have come up with this plot, but of course that doesn't mean "Incident on and off a Mountain Road" is any less entertaining. Director Don Coscarelli deserved his place in the horror hall of fame thanks to his on-going "Phantasm"-series, which has a lot of fans including myself, and the more recent hit "Bubba Ho Tep"; starring genre favorite Bruce Campbell. None of Coscarelli's previous movies were ever exaggeratedly gore, but this 60 minutes episode is pretty blood-soaked and contains several brutal images of torture and dismemberment. The story is simple and handles about a young woman involved in a banal car accident on a remote mountain road who then gets violently chased by a mythical-type monster that stabs out his victims' eyes and subsequently crucifies them. Ellen tries to outsmart the creep by using tricks and booby-traps she learned from her obsessive commando trooper ex-husband (whom we get to know through brief flashbacks). The monster, Moonface, is quite an engaging one man freak show and he somewhat looks like a crossover between Lurch, the Addams Family butler, and The Creeper from "Jeepers Creeper". The dungeon where Moonface brings his victims is stuffed with gruesome torture devices and an impressive collection of severely decomposing human body parts. Beautiful Bree Turner is very good as the hunted prey and there's a truly cool supportive role for Agnus "The Tall Man" Scrimm as the fool who survives in the monster's cellar. "Incident on and off a Mountain Road" by no means is a memorable or innovating horror spectacle, but if the rest of the series will be equally entertaining as this first episode, I'll be more than satisfied.

Deconstructing

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 14 June 2010]

I've seen all the episodes of the Masters of Horror series and although I was quite disappointed from the Argento episode (like the most recent movie of his, more unintentionally funny, to stay positive), the overall quality of the show was pretty high. I still don't quite know why they abandoned the idea and throw the show out, after 2 seasons. But what can you expect of this very first episode of the first season then?

Quite a few things, I'd say. While it starts off pretty bog standard, it pretty soon develops a nice narrative (timeline) and has a few surprises at hand. Don Cascarelli puts the female lead through some crazy things, but only in the end you will see that it was all needed, the build up, to get to the point of the revenge (it is quite "satisfying" for the viewer to see how it all unfolds).

a very good story

[trashgang · 7/10 · 17 June 2013]

While in Europe this was stated as episode 2 this was in fact the opening for the Masters Of Horror series. Much acclaimed about the quality this indeed set the trend for what to come. While season two has it flows and did offer some episodes not exactly fitting into horror as the title of this series said this one does.

The atmosphere set the tone in the beginning while Ellen (Bree Turner) is driving a lonely dark road she's distracted from the road due tuning her radio and almost crashes into a parked car. Her car broken down she's out to find some help and comes across Mooonface (John DeSantis) while hunting down a woman. Moonface collects bodies. Suddenly this episode turns into a slasher with Ellen as the hero. But slowly this episode shows us who Ellen really was in her past. Being married to a Bruce (Ethan Embry) who learned her to defend herself with weapons and teaching survival skills out in the woods Ellen becomes the hunter. But she also comes across Buddy (Angus Scrimm) and old man being captured by Moonface so it seams.

Angus Scrimm is the one who carries this strange episode were not that much is explained about Moonface. It never really becomes gory like other episodes but it surely delivers a few entertaining moments like the eyes being removed by a drill machine.

Gore 1,5/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 3/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 0/5

One of the best of the first season. Way to go Don Coscarelli

[badgrrlkane · 7/10 · 8 June 2006]

Great episode of a very promising horror anthology. Masters Of Horror is exactly what Showtime needed & what horror on television needed. So far,Pick Me Up, Cigarette Burns, Sick Girl, & this one Incident on & off a mountain Road are the ones I'd recommend with Pick Me Up, as my fav. The rest go from bad to worse ( though I've only seen 6 I still have 7 more to go), so you have to check them out for yourself.Different tastes for everyone.Incident was a great new story in the deformed maniac in the woods stalking a damsel in distress story but in this one the damsel has a mean as a snake, survivalist end of the world theorizing redneck for a husband, who's idea of a honeymoon is to train her in the art of survival when the world ends. Via flashback while our main character Ellen played wonderfully in full scream queen mode by Bree Turner is being chased by the pale faced deformed monstrosity remembers her husband played by Ethan Embry (in a very different role for him as he's almost always the nice guy geek & man for a guy really cute 10 yrs ago, he's porked up & lost a lot of his hair) teaching her various ways to defend herself, if she ever finds herself in a dangerous situation. So defend herself she does & the maniac wishes he'd picked on some one else, most definitely. Angus Scrimm also has a role as a crazy guy who Ellen thinks is a prisoner like her in the basement but turns out he's like a relative of Monnface's I guess as they never really speculate on whether he's a victim who just didn't get killed or a relative. He's much better in the Phantasm films. All in all a really good mini-film with good performances. Also Don Coscaelli doesn't make bad films. All of the Phantasm films as well as The Beastmaster & Bubba Ho-Tep are all cult masterpiece. *** out of *****

Great To See Don Doing Something Different.

[jed-estes · 9/10 · 5 September 2006]

While I love Don Coscerillie's work on the Phantasm saga and still hope for him to someday finish what he has begun, I love this side step into weirdness. He has done so few projects outside of the Phantasm realm that when he does move out it must be savored. This and Bubba Ho Tep are his best two non-Phantasm works. Beastmaster can not be compared and I have yet to see Kenny and Company, Jim the World's Greatest, and Survivial Quest. This episode of Masters of Horror is great and I love the serial killer aspect of it. So few one hour timed projects tackle the slasher genre, and this one does it with unrelenting force. It is good to see Angus Scrhim back in the game after some lapses. This as a movie is excellent and combined in with the rest of the Masters episodes forms a great cascade of horror brilliance that will hopefully continue on for many seasons.

A good start for a series

[anthonygiancola24 · 6/10 · 13 February 2021]

Incident On and Off a Mountain Road is the first episode of Masters of Horror, and is directed by Don Coscareli (he of Phantasm/The Beastmaster fame). The film follows Bree Turner as Ellen, a woman driving down a long highway to some truly emolicious early 2000s alternative when she is run off the road. Also on (and off) the highway tonight is a serial killer named Moonface (played by John DeSantis), who is pursuing her. Through flashbacks, we see that Ellen was trained by her survivalist husband.

The look of the film really bugged me, it wasn't terrible, but it did plant me firmly in 2005. There's a certain level of cheapness that comes with the episode that they try to disguise as best they can. It is an interesting time capsule of a show that was made in the mid 2000s. I mean, this was when Wolf Creek and Hostel were the new hotness, and torture porn was the way the horror genre was working for a time. As such, there's a lot of shaky cam chase scenes, dramatic music, and flashes of light in the dark to hide the restraints of the budget. You could put this side by side with something like Wrong Turn, and be very confused as to which is which.

With that said, this film has some good things going for it. The film doesn't really have time to waste, so it goes right into the chase pretty much as soon as the film begins, but it makes time for us to get to know our main victim pretty effectively. Bree Turner is incredibly charming, and likable, as Ellen. She's a great final girl because you get to watch her learn how to get out of each situation. The best types of cat and mouse chases are the ones where the mouse gets one up on the cat. Which happens a couple times here, in ways that are creative and exciting. She even sets up Home Alone style traps in the woods, I mean come on that's just fun.

The makeup on John DeSantis is really good, I mean yeah you can tell it's a latex mask, but it's still really well done. The flashbacks are interspersed in a way that help build the tension of the main story rather than detract from it. Ethan Embry is pretty hammy as Bruce, but in an enjoyable way. Angus Scrimm has a part as Buddy, and he is ham right off the bone, but brings some much needed humor to the proceedings.

The film's climax is kind of a "gotcha" ending with a cruel twist and a dark resolution, but hey, that's horror for you. It's one of those endings, though, where it initially makes so much sense that I couldn't believe I didn't see it coming, but as it went on longer got into "ok, enough" territory.

Still, as an opener to a horror series that is really trying hard to push the envelope of what was seen on TV at the time, it's a good effort.

Boring and not scary

[darkdementress · 3/10 · 3 October 2019]

I rented this on PSN for $2.50 and I wish I hadn't..Two people who put out on the first date end up married hahaha ya because that always happens! Ok so only the woman is getting chased by a creep..stupid..continuous flash backs which should of just been the story up until her accident. She of course is wearing a skirt so she can use her underwear to defend herself..im sorry wtf is this. At least she's fighting back? The way it plays out is nonsense. This was boring and predictable. If you want horror, good story and relatable characters watch Supernatural. It has great rewatch value but this I'll forget in an hour.

A decent start to Masters of Horror

[foreverfinalgirl · 8/10 · 12 February 2023]

I tend to hesitate when going into a tv show or movie that is described as "from the master of horror..." or "the scariest movie you'll ever see". I tend to roll my eyes. But I'm finding the Masters of Horror series pretty good. Granted, some episodes are good and some are bad. I think Incident On and Off a Mountain Road is a good start to this series.

We get four kills overall. Unfortunately the deaths are not graphic or for the most part not shown. But having said that we do get to see some blood, especially when Moonface and Ellen use the drill press and we see the blood dripping from the drill. It's not gory but we do see a lot of bodies in various forms of decay. (Mostly old and dusty.) I think the actors did a decent job with their acting. We have Ellen played by Bree Turner (known for Grimm and mostly non Horror stuff). She's our lead who is driving alone at night with a secret of her own. Bruce, played by Ethan Embry (known for The Prophecy II, Disturbing Behavior, FreakyLinks, Fear Itself, Devil's Candy, and lots more) plays Ellen's survivalist husband.

Moonface is played by John DeSantis (known for Thirteen Ghosts, Dresden Files, 30 Days of Night: Dark Days), the creature that has an interesting decorating style. And rounding out the crew is Angus Scrimm (AKA The Tall Man in the Phantasm movies. He's also known for Chopping Mall and Subspecies) as Buddy, a crazy old man trapped (?) by Moonface.

Overall, I think Don Coscarelli did a great job with this episode and if the rest of the episodes are as good then this series lives up to the hype. My main complaint with Incident On and Off a Mountain Road, is that we don't get to see the kills really. I think if they showed more of that it would be better. I definitely recommend this series if you haven't seen it yet.

Pretty okay

[cactuscab · 7/10 · 25 November 2006]

I've seen four of the Masters of Horror episodes thus far: "Cigarette Burns", "Dreams in the Witch House", "Sick Girl" and this film. Of them I find 'Cigarette Burns' fairly forgettable, 'Dreams...' the best of the bunch, 'Sick Girl' awful, a huge disappointment after Lucky McKee's 'May' and as for 'Incidents...' I thought it was kinda all right, to paraphrase Charlie Daniels. The story is simple enough: a young woman has an accident on country road and ends up being stalked by a crazy psycho. The gimmick is that the woman has more going on than the killer expects. The basis for the movie is from a Joe Lansdale story (who's early stuff I highly recommend if your into gonzo horror stories; check out "High Cotton" or "Bumper Crop") and it's an effective foundation for a film. But the high point is the lead performance by Bree Turner. I'd only seen her before in comedies, thought she was a pretty and competent actor. Here she proves she can carry a film and has range. I really hope she ends up getting a chance to carry a major film. Recommended. 7 stars.

A good opener for Masters of Horror

[jslip3 · 27 October 2011]

This episode seemed to take a rather reflexive look at horror, so that we see the results of a female protagonist who actually knows how to defend herself and is resourceful enough to actually take out the antagonist(s). After crashing into another car, Ellen finds herself being hunted by the local, serial killing ghoul. But instead of making the typical mistakes of women in horror films on the run from death, Ellen uses her defensive training that she learned from her obsessive and abusive husband, who lies dead in her trunk. The irony in the story lies in the fact that after Ellen uses her training to kill Bruce, she then gets pulled into a horrible situation requiring all her skills to survive. What's really great in the episode that made the whole thing worthwhile was that Ellen was able to leave Bruce's body at the home of the now dead psychopath, strung up on a crucifix like all of the ghoul's victims, washing Ellen's hands of the revenge she took on her husband. Quite nicely done.

Kind of saw where this one was going, but still had its moments.

[Aaron1375 · 5/10 · 22 August 2010]

Of the Master's of Horror shows I have seen this one is not all that good and not all that bad. Certainly not in the league of Cigarette Burns from John Carpenter, but what does one expect? The guy who did this one is not exactly a movie making machine with his best work coming in the Phantasm series with little else of note. Though I have heard a few good things from Bubba Ho Tep. This one is about a woman coming off a rather abusive relationship having a run in with a strange mountain man that one of those unfortunate enough to be caught by him calls Moonface. A game of cat and mouse ensues and though the film thinks it is being clever you should be able to figure out the twist at the end fairly easily. The killer in this film is your typical 80's slasher killer, the deformed man with a weapon and bad attitude. The heroine in this one is not so typical, though not all that surprising either, as like I said you should be able to deduce her secrets as you see glimpses of her former life in flashbacks. Also of note in this one is the guy who plays the Tall Man in the Phantasm movies having a bit of a small part in this film. Though all his menace is reduced and he is a bit of an idiot.

Another Decent MOH Entry - This One From Don Coscarelli...

[EVOL666 · 7/10 · 17 May 2006]

INCIDENT isn't the best of the MASTERS OF HORROR entries that I've seen so far - but this is only the third I've watched if that means anything. It is entertaining, has a few strong scenes, and the acting is good throughout - but the storyline is also relatively predictable and far-fetched - even for a horror film...

Ellen wrecks her car on a deserted mountain road and is being stalked through the woods by a 7-foot freak with "grills" like Paul Wall. Just so happens that through flash-back sequences we find that Ellen is married to some survivalist weirdo who is all about knives, and guns, and real Grizzly Adams-meets-the UniBomber type stuff. Apparently, all of this rubbed off on Ellen as she devises ridiculous traps and weapons out of the surrounding shrubbery, the contents of her purse, and the elastic-band from her underwear. Despite her tough stance - Ellen is captured. Taken back to the freak's lair - Ellen sees the remnants of his other victims, and meets some blabbering old whackadoo (played well by Angus Scrimm) and we find out that even though bound, battered, and bruised - Ellen still has some fight left...

INCIDENT is fast-paced (as any one-hour film should be...), there are some decent FX and there is a decent "twist" at the end - but there's just too much ridiculous stuff going on (other than the 7-foot mutated freak...) to really "buy-in" to the story line. Also, I was kinda annoyed that the freak's background is never explained either. But despite the faults, INCIDENT was still an entertaining way to kill an hour - but it's no CIGARETTE BURNS either...7/10