jslip3 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.

julian kennedy Masters of Horror: Don Coscarelli: Incident On and Off a Mountain Road: 8 out of 10: In many ways fifty minutes is the perfect length for a horror movie. Incident certainly has enough plot for a full length feature, but this is a story broken down to its core elements without any unnecessary filler. (It has a bit of a Twilight Zone feel as a result.) Masters of Horror is that wonderful Showtime series that has produced some great horror films and some guilty pleasures (in particular Clive Barker's Haeckel's Tale). Incident got this anthology series off to a very strong start.The film is about a woman that has a car accident on a deserted stretch of rain soaked mountain road. She quickly finds herself perused by a serial killer (dubbed Moonface) who is busy chasing a previous victim. She turns out not to be the damsel in distress that we suspected, as she has had survival training from her boyfriend which the film doles out in flashback. It is also interesting as one can see the progression of her relationship with the boyfriend as it coincides her conflict with Moonface.Director Don Coscarielli runs a tight ship with plenty of surprises in both plot and scope. The acting by all is above board with a particular nod to John DeSantis as the serial killer. Moonface, with his chrome teeth, baldhead and big shiny knife; he is such a quality villain that it seems a shame he is in such a small film. Moonface certainly could hold his own with the Jason’s and Leatherface’s of the world. In fact, he has that childlike quality that made Leatherface such an endearing character,. (Not to mention they share the same interior decorator.) The gore is good, the set design is excellent and the movie is simply never boring. Add on a story with depth and layers and you have a very strong start to an excellent series.

MARIO GAUCI The first entry in this popular series isn't especially remarkable – being too derivative of THE Texas CHAIN SAW MASSACRE (1974), for one thing – if still quite watchable (largely thanks to a good leading performance by Bree Turner).A woman driving her car on a mountain road by night is involved in a traffic accident; noticing a figure in the vicinity, she thinks it may be hurt and offers aid – this, however, turns out to be a monstrous-looking homicidal maniac! As she's pursued deep into the woods by him, the woman thinks back (shown in intermittent flashes) on her troubled relationship with a cynical and patronizing husband fixated on survival tactics. Ironically, this rigorous training at his hands turns out to be very useful to her during the present arduous situation – since the heroine surprises her hulking assailant by demonstrating an ability to defend herself and even lay traps for him (though one actually immobilizes the female driver of the car she had run into, which obviously dooms her!).However, the woman is still captured and taken to the killer's underground lair – which is filled with the usual glut of rotting corpses (a number of whom have even been crucified and are proudly displayed in the front entrance). Therein, she also meets another 'prisoner' – an old man who, having gone mad in the interim, hinders more than helps the heroine's attempts to get free of her own shackles! Eventually, she manages to overcome the maniac and coolly executes him; the denouement, however, is something of a mixed bag – coming up with one twist too many (the revelation concerning the ultimate fate of Turner's husband at least is a nice touch, albeit still ripping off Mario Bava's superb poliziottesco RABID DOGS [1974]).

gavin6942 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.