This film made me quite sad after I finally comprehended it. This story of a supernatural venus fly-trap could have been a excellent with a little tweaking to the script.
My take on the story: A serial killer snagging people from the area around a rest stop is killed by a family of even-more-than-usually freakish Jesus freaks. The family, the killer, and all of the killer's victims are caused to haunt the area, drawing in anyone who passes by the area, especially if they stop at the rest stop.
My overall view of the plot is taken only from elements presented in the actual film, but is supported by the "family album" by Scotty presented on the DVD. The killer DID kill the family, except for the father and Scotty, we simply aren't shown how the father manages to kill him.
Here are my suggestions for plugging the holes in the story and making it a tad more cohesive: 1) Make the heroine appear to be less appallingly stupid by showing that she's caught in a loop and can't leave the area. The fact that she didn't simply start walking parallel to the road but far enough away not to be seen from it was a constant thorn in my side while watching. Having her try this, but always winding up back at the rest stop would have alleviated this.
2) Work the bit of film Scotty shot of his father burying the killer into the fabric of the film once it's been established that we're not dealing with just a whackjob and that we're in the middle of a supernatural event. More of the family in any case would have been great, should have given more screen time to them and less to rather silly things like the scene in which sweetcheeks the heroine whiles away her time in the ranger's shack...
3) Rethink the role fire plays in the story. A puddle of gasoline on a cement floor do not cause a building constructed of cement to explode. Covering the hood of a truck with burning gasoline does not cause the truck to explode. Sure, these are minor points I suppose, especially in an industry where vehicles explode at the slightest provocation...
Handled differently, this movie might have been a great little ghost story. Sadly, it was not. All the elements were there, they just never came together.
My take on the story: A serial killer snagging people from the area around a rest stop is killed by a family of even-more-than-usually freakish Jesus freaks. The family, the killer, and all of the killer's victims are caused to haunt the area, drawing in anyone who passes by the area, especially if they stop at the rest stop.
My overall view of the plot is taken only from elements presented in the actual film, but is supported by the "family album" by Scotty presented on the DVD. The killer DID kill the family, except for the father and Scotty, we simply aren't shown how the father manages to kill him.
Here are my suggestions for plugging the holes in the story and making it a tad more cohesive: 1) Make the heroine appear to be less appallingly stupid by showing that she's caught in a loop and can't leave the area. The fact that she didn't simply start walking parallel to the road but far enough away not to be seen from it was a constant thorn in my side while watching. Having her try this, but always winding up back at the rest stop would have alleviated this.
2) Work the bit of film Scotty shot of his father burying the killer into the fabric of the film once it's been established that we're not dealing with just a whackjob and that we're in the middle of a supernatural event. More of the family in any case would have been great, should have given more screen time to them and less to rather silly things like the scene in which sweetcheeks the heroine whiles away her time in the ranger's shack...
3) Rethink the role fire plays in the story. A puddle of gasoline on a cement floor do not cause a building constructed of cement to explode. Covering the hood of a truck with burning gasoline does not cause the truck to explode. Sure, these are minor points I suppose, especially in an industry where vehicles explode at the slightest provocation...
Handled differently, this movie might have been a great little ghost story. Sadly, it was not. All the elements were there, they just never came together.