ROADGAMES (1981) – Episode 262 – Decades Of Horror 1980s

Quid: “Aren’t you kind of young to be hitchhiking out here all by yourself?” Hitch: “Aren’t you kind of old to be picking me up?” She’s got a point. Join your faithful Grue Crew – Chad Hunt, Bill Mulligan, and Jeff Mohr – as they take another trip down under for some Ozploitation with Richard Franklin’s Roadgames (1981).

Decades of Horror 1980s
Episode 262 – Roadgames (1981)

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A laid-back American truck driver in south Australia suspects that the driver of a green van is killing young women along his route, and plays a game of cat-and-mouse to catch him.

 

• Directed by: Richard Franklin
• Writing Credits: Everett De Roche (screenplay); Everett De Roche & Richard Franklin (original story)
• Music by: Brian May
• Cinematography by: Vincent Monton (director of photography)
• Editing by: Edward McQueen-Mason
• Production Design by: Jon Dowding
• Visual Effects by:
  • Roger Cowland (visual effects)
  • Jack Endacott (process operator)
  • Bill Hansard (process photography)
  • Richard Wilmot (optical effects printer) (uncredited)
• Stunt Coordinator: Grant Page
• Truck Driver / Dog Owner: Tom Glass
• Selected Cast:
  • Stacy Keach as Pat Quid
  • Jamie Lee Curtis as Hitch
  • Marion Edward as Frita
  • Grant Page as Smith or Jones
  • Thaddeus Smith as Police
  • Steve Millichamp as Police (as Stephen Millichamp)
  • Alan Hopgood as Lester
  • John Murphy as Benny Balls
  • Bill Stacey as Captain Careful
  • Robert Thompson as Sneezy Rider
  • Ed Turley as Roadhouse Proprietor
  • Angelica La Bozzetta as Hitchhiker (as Angie La Bozzetta)
  • Colin Vancao as Fred Frugal
  • Paul Harris as Frugal Child
  • Rochelle Harris as Frugal Child
  • Tony Bishop as Honeymooner
  • Abbe Holmes as Honeymooner
  • Carole-Ann Aylett as Cleaning Lady (as Carol Ann Aylett)
  • Killer as Boswell
  • Les James as Mechanic tending to alarm (uncredited)
  • Tom Ryan as Jackaroo (uncredited)

It’s Ozploitation time again for the Grue Crew! This go-around, the Crew discusses Richard Franklin’s Roadgames (1981) starring Stacy Keach and Jamie Lee Curtis as the pair trek across Southern Australia’s Nullarbor Plain hauling pig carcasses from Melbourne to Perth. Conceived as Hitchcock’s Rear Window (1954) as seen from a tractor-trailer, Roadgames features encounters along the road with a cast of recurring travelers and a serial killer. Keach’s and Curtis’ chemistry is apparent in their engaging performances. Though not straight horror, Roadgames is horror-adjacent while generating its share of suspense amid horrific events.

At the time of this writing, Roadgames is available to stream from Amazon Prime, Peacock, Tubi, PlutoTV, and multiple PPV sources. The movie is available on physical media as a standard Blu-ray disc from Shout! Factory.

Every two weeks, Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror 1980s podcast will cover another horror film from the 1980s. The next episode’s film, chosen by Bill, will be Evilspeak (1981), one of the video nasties, featuring Clint Howard as an outcast military cadet, R.G. Armstrong as Sarge, and Richard Moll in a supporting role. This should be interesting! 

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