Now available on 4K UHD and Blu-Ray
Anyone who has driven to Las Vegas on the 15 has seen the signs for Zyzzyx Road, a road that seemingly goes nowhere from the main highway, one that many have been tempted to take but few have dared to. Here, the mystery of Zyzzyx Road take a travel couple on a ride they never expected.
Written and directed by John Penney, this crime drama thriller takes a place that many are familiar with and gives it mystery beyond the expectations of “just another highway exit”, creating a story where two lovers on the run end up taking the exit and meeting the mystery in their own way. The writing here works pretty well and there are some interesting twists and turns, but this is a film that has a limited appeal to those who aren’t already familiar with the road, into odd mysteries, or the cast. The story isn’t bad, but it’s not great enough to have mass appeal. To a more niche audience, the film works rather well and makes good use of the locations, creating some mystery and a bit of tension here and there with a few surprising twists (and a few visible from the coast). The writing works decently well and so does the direction overall.
The cast here is fairly limited with just three actors carrying the majority of film. Leo Grillo is Grant, one of the leads, one of the lovers on a drive, or perhaps the run, with Katherine Heigl as Marissa, his very young lover who may not be of age, and tom Sizemore as Joey, a mysterious man they meet on Zyzzyx Road who may be more than they could ever guess here. His presence seems to be the cataclysm that starts the story once they are there, whether it is obvious or not from the start. His performance is good and so are those of Grillo and Heigl. There are of course a few more members of the cast and they all do decent work here.
The film looks decent on a technical level with good cinematography by David Klein which grabs the mood the road and the desert, how desolate and isolated it is, how that road and those leading to it can be maddening when driving them. The look here is just right. The music to go with it, by Rayn Beveridge, is decent and works rather well with the images.
Overall, Zyzzyx Road is a decent thriller with some interesting performances and cinematography that catches the very specific mood of that area just off of the 15 on the way to Vegas. This is a film that may not be for everyone, but its audience knows who they are.
This new release of Zyzzyx Road on Blu-Ray has some interesting extras beyond the basic new 2K 1080p presentation which looks good. There are quite a few extras including a commentary track with Joe Grillo, an archival interview with writer-director John Penney, a featurette about “The Legend of Zyzzyx Road”, and the shooting location then and now featurette. These listed are the top of the bunch here.
Quick note, the real Zzyzx is not spelled quite the same as film’s title here.