Thirty-One Days O’Horror: Roadgames (1981)

Let’s Ride #24!

Up until a few days ago, 1981’s Roadgames wasn’t even on my radar. I didn’t know that it existed. Heck, I never even knew that Stacy Keach and Jamie Lee Curtis ever made a film together. When I finally put eyes on this little gem of a movie, however, I was pleasantly surprised with just how excellent it is. It’s probably the least scary film that I’m reviewing this month, but it’s so good that I just had to throw it into this year’s Thirty-One Days O’Horror list.

In the film, Stacy Keach portrays Quid, an American trucker working in Australia. While stopping for the evening, he sees a man in a green van check into a hotel with a young, female hitchhiker that he passed on the highway earlier that day. When he wakes up in his rig the next morning, he sees the man from the van watching trash trucks pick up a bunch of bags. Thinking that the man’s behavior is a bit odd, Quid heads off to pick up a load of pork for his next delivery along with his dingo, Boswell. As they travel along the highway to Perth, Quid passes and encounters a number of odd travelers including a motorcyclist in red, a station wagon loaded down with various sports balls, a clunky boat being towed by a poor driver, a family, and a few hitchhikers. He also encounters the green van and hears about a serial killer murdering young women. Quid picks up the woman from the family car he passed earlier and they begin playing games. Soon enough, Quid starts questioning the woman about the recent murders. Thinking that he might be the murderer, the lady runs from him. Later on, Quid picks up a beautiful young woman that he nicknames “Hitch.” In actuality, she’s Pamela Rushworth, an American diplomat’s daughter looking for a few days of fun. Together, they attempt to piece together evidence that points to the man in the green van being the murderer. It soon turns into a cat-and-mouse game between Quid, Hitch, and the man in the van, but Quid also becomes a prime suspect in the murders. Who’s who? Watch Roadgames to find out the truth!

This is a character driven film spearheaded by the brilliant performance of Stacy Keach. He spends a lot of the movie talking to himself and Bosworth. Some of the best moments are when he gives names, personalities, occupations, and more to the travelers that he passes on the highway. We also get to see the effects of driving long hours in isolation. Jamie Lee Curtis does a great job as well but, in all honesty, she isn’t in the film enough to flex her acting chops. The film, directed by Richard Franklin, has some very humorous and ridiculous moments stitched together with some very dark sequences. It’s an extremely well done film.

There were plenty of moments where this film’s plot could have unraveled, but Keach’s performance, coupled with Franklin’s direction and the solid script written by Everett De Roche, keep the ludicrous events and bleak moments tightly woven together to create a solid film. Be sure to check this thriller out for yourself!

Thanks for checking out my review!