Route 666

Plot synopsis:
Sitting alone at a roadside bar in Arizona, Fred "Rabbit" Smith (Williams) drinks nervously. Two people named Jack La Roca (Phillips) and Stephanie (Petty) enter the bar. Rabbit uses the restroom followed by Jack who handcuffs him. He reveals that he and Steph are Federal Marshals assigned to capture Rabbit and bring him to court in Los Angeles to testify against a mob boss named Benny (Sven-Ole Thorsen) who Rabbit used to work for. He was originally going to testify in exchange for full immunity but ran after learning the mob joined forces with the Russians. They are hunting him, too. Jack calls for a Suburban driven by four other marshals to pick them up before Benny and his mob arrive with heavy firepower. They leave out the back and battle the assassins until marshals; Nick, Mary, PT and Joe arrive between them. They manage to kill all assassins but Benny. Jack and Rabbit use Rabbit's car to escape in the same path as the other marshals (including Steph in the truck). Jack manages to shoot Benny's tires out before leaving.
PT complains to Steph about Jack, believing he isn't trustworthy. She tells him to focus on finding out where they are. Jack tries to find the roads they are using on the map but Rabbit tells him that the back roads are too old and don't have a place on the map except for his old guide. He reads him that a second highway exists next to Route 66 which leads faster to the California border. The road is Route 666 that was condemned after a prison road crew accident. Hearing the story, Jack has strange quick flashbacks of four prisoners digging a hole surrounded by law-enforcement. Meanwhile, Benny shoots a tourist and takes his Jeep. The marshals arrive at a deserted tourist attraction bordering Route 666 and see a restricted access sign. As Jack debates about using the road, he experiences more flashbacks and tells Steph that he was born around the area and his mother died when he was six and he hardly knew his father. Much to Rabbit's dismay, Jack kicks open the gates and the group drive onto it, Steph rides with Jack and Rabbit.
Unknown to them, a county sheriff's deputy named Gill has been following them. He sees they went down Route 666 and requests for backup on the radio. His father, Sheriff Conaway, denies and tells him to leave the road. Gill ignores and pulls the two vehicles over. Jack and PT confront him and Gill abusively tells them the road is restricted. Jack shows him his badge and he leaves irritated. They drive along until they spot a cemetery along the road and stop there. Jack and Steph explore the graveyard, finding Jack's father, John La Roca's grave. PT sees the grave along with three others next to it are the graves of Miles Hackman, Frank Slater and Steven Pikowski. PT explains that all but John La Roca were infamous murderers from the 1960s. La Roca was a bank robber who quit robbing after marrying a woman in a small town and having a baby, Jack. After six years there was no more money for his family so he tried to rob a bank but was caught and thrown in the same prison as Hackman, Slater and Pikowski.
PT suddenly realizes La Roca is Jack's father. They soon start to fight each other. Mary and Nick leave Joe to watch Rabbit while they go back into the Suburban and have sex. Behind Joe, Benny appears and fires at the two with a silenced gun. Before he can reach Rabbit Joe stabs Benny and takes his gun. Blood rushes out of Benny's back which suddenly attracts the decomposed walking corpses of Slater, La Roca, Pikowski and Hackman. They capture Joe and drag him to the road where they pound his back into the asphalt with a jackhammer. While screaming at Nick and Mary to get out of the Suburban, Rabbit takes the silencer off the gun and fires at the zombies, alerting everyone else. The team battles the undead with no effect and they escape the area. Jack stays behind to slow the zombies and uses the stolen Jeep to escape but crashes.
Jack wakes up in a cave next to a native, explaining that he found him and brought him here. He tells him that he us restore peace to the cursed road because haunted spirits still walk it. A confused Jack thanks the man and leaves. Nick leaves to smoke in the Suburban. He slowly falls asleep until Slater slams his fingers off with the car door and slams his head with a sledge hammer. He travels along the road until he sees the two vehicles with their tires melted at a ruined drive-in theatre and is reunited with the rest of the group.
The group goes to check in on Nick while Rabbit stays handcuffed to a pole and stomps a Scorpion, exposing much blood. Rabbit turns around to see Pikowski's zombie swinging a pick axe at him and missing. Rabbit manages to pull the pole out and escape with Pikowski not following. He catches up with the group and sees that Nick is missing. Rabbit thinks and establishes that the zombies can only travel on the road and concrete/cement and they appear from underground. Jack spots an old telephone booth and successfully dials 911, connecting with Sheriff Conaway. Jack gives him the number of the Los Angeles Marshal’s office and tells him to call the office and request backup. He agrees and hangs up.
After four hours of waiting, Jack has another flashback and sees his father, Slater, Hackman and Pikowski working on a road when Hackman pulls out a knife and attempts to escape while John hides under a machine and tries to stay away from the trouble. The escape fails and the unseen police office in charge makes them start digging a large hole. Hearing sirens, they spot Sheriff Conaway along with his deputies, Tim and Gill. Jack and Rabbit go to the bathroom stall while Conaway and his officers hold everyone else at gunpoint. Conaway demands to know where Jack is; only hearing that Jack is dead. Conaway shoots Mary in order to make PT tell them that Jack and Rabbit are in the stall. Tim and Gil grab Rabbit who is wearing Jack's badge to confuse them and brings him outside. Jack draws Gil out and points a gun at his head when he enters his truck.
They drive further away and Jack handcuffs Gil to the truck and breaks his nose. He begs for him to not stay on the road, stating the zombies kill anything on the road. Jack asks why when the four zombies rise again and start approaching. Gil uncuffs himself but is too late as they knock him down and kill him with the jackhammer. Jack drives back and Conaway goes to the truck thinking Gil is in it and PT fights Tim who drops his shotgun but is able to shoot PT in the stomach with his pistol. Rabbit picks up the shotgun and shoots Tim, saying "There's a new Marshal in town". Jack punches Conaway multiple times and restrains him to the SUV. Conaway starts bleeding and asks where his son is. Jack doesn't reply and Conaway slowly realizes that the zombies put him in the road.
He explains that they travel under the road and feed on blood to stay strong or they are unable to rise from underground and that blood awakens them. Jack wonders how Conaway knows so much about the zombies and has a final flashback. It is night and the unseen boss is Sheriff Conaway whom the prison warden put in charge of the gang. Though La Roca didn't assist in the attempted escape, he is knocked unconscious and thrown into the hole dug by the three others. Conaway and his men open fire at the convicts in their legs, keeping them alive and preventing them to move out of the hole. Conaway plans to tell the warden that there was an accident and the convicts were caught under the roller. He starts the steam roller and buries the four men alive. Conaway and his thugs learn about the zombies return and they were killing anyone whoever set foot on the road to cover up the crime and the zombies.
Jack finally realizes this and continuously yells and brutally punches at Conaway. Conaway begs him not to be in the road. Suddenly, the zombies arrive. They pin Jack down and Conaway tries to enter the SUV but Rabbit knocks him out. He and Steph are unable to kill the zombies by gunfire as the jackhammer is brought up. Jack looks at John and yells with sympathy that he is his son. After seconds, John suddenly snaps and pushes the jackhammer into Slater's stomach, destroying his spirit and body. He then kills Hackman with the jackhammer which stops working. Pikowski hits John multiple times with the hammer until he loses too much blood energy. Jack cuts his hand with a knife and embraces it into his father's hand. With enough energy, John thanks his son and chokes Pikowski, killing him.
John tears off his dog tag and gives it to Jack. John is then able to walk onto the dirt and crosses the afterlife into Heaven, finally lifting the curse on Route 666. Conaway emerges from the SUV and he was going to shoot them until Jack, Steph and Rabbit shoot him everywhere. He falls barely stable to the ground and has an unseen vision of an even larger steam roller (as the Grim Reaper) coming towards him. He shoots at it with no effect and it crushes him. Jack, Steph and Rabbit walk alone along Route 666 to head to the Arizona/California border as Jack finally pieces together what the native said to him. With Sheriff Conaway and his thugs dead Route 666 is now peaceful once more. Jack, Steph and Rabbit walk along the sunset and they know that the curse has been finally lifted.

Tags: paranormal, violence, flashback

Review:
An horror road movie with an interesting twist, this flick about a part of Route 666 infested by ghosts is better than one may think before of seeing it.
the lines are enough to make the movie worth while and the make-up effects are a nice refreshing change from the cgi laden horror flicks of late.
Good tension throughout, the living-dead guys are creepy enough (not easy to pull off in bright desert sunlight), and the Native American shaman looks more like a deli counterman than the time-worn cinema stereotype--all in all, worth a look-see.
In fact, this has been a pet peeve of mine for years, and I dearly wish it would be advised against by every teacher of cinema...ACTION RULE # 1:  If people shoot the "bad thing" fifty damn times, and with no effect, THEN DON'T HAVE THEM KEEP ON DOING IT!.
Lou Diamond Phillips plays Jack La Roca, a U.S. Marshall and former Navy SEAL assigned to pick up "Rabbit" (Steven Williams), who is in the federal witness protection program but has been on the run.
La Roca is to take Rabbit from Arizona to California to testify in court, but along the way they run into a variety of obstacles, mostly horrific, the most serious of which are the result of La Roca's decision to take a shortcut on Route 666.Lou Diamond Phillips is a B and C-movie king.
But although goofy at times, Route 666 is a fun-to-watch action/horror film.
This was the first film in about 10 years allowed to do so.Wesley quickly builds an effective, sarcastic and usually witty rapport between La Roca, his partner Steph (Lori Petty) and Rabbit, although Petty can be a bit over-the-top at times.
Although these aren't the most exciting shoot-out scenes ever filmed, they have a nice feel to them, partially due to the setting and lighting, and there is a pleasantly unusual tangent when Phillips has a bizarre "flashback" as he looks at a victim's blood spreading on the dirt.There is an eerie atmosphere to the whole film, and especially when the horror material starts, it is very refreshing that Wesley chose to keep the proceedings in broad daylight.
Even though this isn't Wesley's masterpiece, he shows that he has one in him.Sure the film has flaws--Phillips plays much of the film with what looks like a large wad of raspberry gum stuck to his forehead, the shaky cam and other effects didn't work very well for me during the horror attack scenes, the score sounded fairly generic and repetitive (it reminded me of playing a video game), and there are some plot points that don't make a lot of sense if you think about them too much.
Lou Diamond Phillips stars as a US Marshal trying to get witness Steven Williams to Los Angeles to testify at a mob trial.
The road holds a terrible secret, there's a reason it's been closed off for years.Route 666 was a made for television film for the Science Fiction Channel and it's pretty good considering some of what usually comes out of there.
Lou and the rest of the cast deliver good performances in a film that glides effortlessly from an action/adventure to a horror flick.
For those who like both genres and Lou Diamond Phillips, Route 666 will keep you on the edge of the seat at the end..
This is a toss up between being really bad and being just a below average B-movie.Lou Diamond Phillips and Lori Petty are government agents that track down a Federally protected witness(Steven Williams)hiding in the desert along Route 66.
And L.D. Phillip's character is outraged at the murder of four psychotic killers, but treats his prisoner (a Mafia witness whose only crime is that he's trying to save his life by not testifying) like crap?And the strobing effect every time the zombies were on screen has got to be the most irritating visual horror effect since the rapid back-and-forth zooming in MAD DOCTOR OF BLOOD ISLAND.
As Lou and Lori transport 'Rabbit' (Steven Williams), a Federally protected witness from the deserted Route 66 badlands to LA, they must evade mafiosos who want Rabbit dead.
They take the cursed and closed 'Route 666' road as a short cut and find themselves tormented by the zombies of four murderer/prisoners who were the center of a violent debacle years earlier.Entertaining B-horror can be enjoyed if you just sit back and take some meds.
I found it particularly humorous when the witness, while handcuffed to the car in the middle of the desert, not only survives a hit attempt, but also survives an attack by the worker-zombies all-the-while Lou is busy having a fist-fight in the desert with one of the other agents while Lori watches the fight, and two of the other agents are getting it on in the back of one of the transport vehicles...the bulletproof suburban as opposed to the convertible the 'protected' witness has been riding in.
ROUTE 666 isn't really a horror movie, though that's probably where you'll find it in the video story.
Like TREMORS, ROUTE 666 is more of an old-fashioned B movie, the kind of film you'd see as the second feature at a 50s drive-in back.
The plot is pretty basic: federal marshals transporting a key witness to testify in Los Angeles are stranded on a closed strip of Route 66 - known as Route 666 - and are besieged by the ghosts of four chain gang workers who were killed years before.Lou Diamond Phillips is good, and Steven Williams manages to show some comedic skills with some funny dialogue and reactions.
Lori Petty isn't great, but at least she's not as bad as she can usually be, and Dale Midkiff is good, but the rest are pretty much unknowns in typical supporting roles.
Veteran character L.Q. Jones plays the local sheriff with a secret.The movie moves at a brisk pace, never dwelling on the quiet moments too long, and bringing some gritty, jittery camerawork to the action scenes, similar to the style of SAVING PRIVATE RYAN.
It's a well-crafted little suspense movie with some cool-looking zombie/ghosts, a good dose of comedy, lots of action, and a cool soundtrack that perfectly captures the feeling and bleakness of the landscape.
"Route 666" tells the story of a cop and his buddies who retrieve a witness meant to testify in L.A. However, while on their way, aside from a group of men wanting to kill the witness, they attempt a supposed shortcut just off of Route 66, which inevitably spells death.Along this road lies a secret hidden for years.
In addition to that, a secret connection lies between one of the gang members and a certain traveler...If you have nothing else to do and you're in for a good "B" movie, take a look at this one.
Route 666, a direct-to-video release starring Lou Diamond Phillips, was about a group of US Marshalls transporting a protected witness to California.
The action was cartoonish, especially with these zombies looking more like bad modern art made with clay, and the tacky cinematography which was more appropriate for a video game.
Lori Petty's voice was like nails on a chalkboard, Lou Diamond Phillips seemed very detached from his role, and the supportive characters either overacted or seemed completely disinterested.
The effect doesn't make the movie any better, simply because its action scenes are just, well, terrible.And then prisoners turned ghosts appears and more foolishness happens.
Yes, looking @ release date and others' comments, you'd pass this one by...But take another look :It's a road movie, which is a great and under-utilised genre; It's got grim humour coupled with a ghost-line (not bad); It's got good character actors; Its script is tight; And I come from the place where they filmed Mad Max (before the US dubbed it : cringe), so give me some credit for knowing films that use deserted environments !Someone had an idea with this one and got 3/4 of the way there.
The plot involving restless ghouls on an abandoned desert road is mildly involving, but some terrible overacting (Dale Midkiff, in particular, constantly acts like Chandler--from the TV show "Friends"--having a panic attack) and remarkably stupid plot contrivances undermine any tension built by the director.
By some weird twist "Route 666" isn't a movie and it's shot by a cameraman who should aim at something else with a tool that looks nothing like a camera.
Well, I guess it can have something to do with the retarded storyline, horrible actors, useless FX and the cameraman who makes the "action"-sequences look like something that's been filmed from a washing-machine during an earthquake.
I'm asking myself why I watched 'Route 666' in the first place, and I'm clutching at the fact that the director William Wesley was behind the well thought of cult favourite 'Scarecrows' (a movie I admit I haven't seen) and the cast includes veterans LQ Jones (a Peckinpah regular) and Dick Miller (of Roger Corman fame).
So despite my better judgement, and seeing that b-grade mainstay Lou Diamond Phillips ('The Big Hit') and the incredibly irritating Lori Petty ('Tank Girl') were the stars, I rented it hoping I'd be pleasantly surprised with a cheesy but entertaining good time.
Phillips and Petty are joined by Steven Williams ('21 Jump Street') who plays a sassy Mafia accountant, like a poor man's Chris Rock morphed with Joe Pesci's 'Lethal Weapon' character, and TV hack Dale Midkiff, who once played Elvis, and appears to be trying to duplicate his physique circa 1975.
The plot, for what it is, concerns the ghosts (zombies?) of a long dead chain gang who haunt a deserted stretch of highway.
With actors like Lou Diamond Phillips (Bats), Steven Williams (Jason Goes to Hell), and L.Q. Jones (The Beast Within) they make this movie ten times better.
He only needed one line to steal that flick (Stupid white men.) and GHOST DOG is one damned great film.I could defend the rest of the cast (I think everyone more than held their own and turned in solid performances) but there is no need.
Not sure in the direction they wanted to take this film, but its definitely not a horror, more of a road movie with a touch of every other genre.ALL in all, if your lost for what film to watch, definitely worth checking out Route 666, its not the greatest film, but go with an open mind, and don't pick at everything you see, and you'll enjoy the film, I could quite happily sit through it again.
His role consists of delivering ridiculous lines in straight face.The plot makes no sense.I gave this crapola 2 stars because the black guy, Steven Williams was actually able to deliver a good performance.Everyone else in this film stinks..
Lou Diamond Phillips providas a bit of balance between the movie and we get to see some terrible make-up and gore effects as we see a ghoul/zombie/ghost chain gang of dead prisoners who spike and jack hammer their victims to death.
Like I said, this is one of those movies that are so bad you just have to watch to witness it yourself.
Will Wesley hasn't got a clue about what makes a good horror film (just throwing some 2nd rate, has been actors in the credits won't make a movie good Will).
The performances are nothing less than superb, with Lori Petty very effective in her role as a female agent and Lou Diamond Phillips, giving his best performance in years and almost as poignant as his work in the series Longmire.
What sets this film apart as a horror movie is the touching moments involving Phillips and his father, a man he lost in childhood in the most tragic circumstances but with whom he still has strong connections.
He and his team of FBI agents have to dodge crooked cops, gang members, and most importantly, zombie ghosts (one of which just happens to be LDP's dead father) The film starts off with the most epic gunfight ever put to screen, followed closely by some of the greatest horror you will ever see in your life (sensing the sarcasm?) In all honesty though, this is a really fun film and makes for a great "B-Movie" night.
Two federal marshals (Lou Diamond Phillips, Lori Petty) find a federal witness (Steven Williams) hiding out in a bar in the Arizona desert.
Some more marshals arrive and they escape with the witness down an abandoned stretch of highway that is haunted by the ghosts of a prison chain gang that died there.Williams is the best part.
The film is a B-Movie to the core, with cheesy acting, special effects and the whole lot.Lou Diamond Phillips, or as the cool kids call him, LDP, has to find and escort a witness back to court.
A shootout occurs, one that is so horribly done that it feels like a low grade action film from the 80's.On their way to bring the witness back, LDP begins having these bizarre visions of a graveyard and prison workers dying.
In fact, the cast in this film has done a lot of work, so maybe you'll find someone you like.I certainly don't have high expectations when I watch a "B" movie, but I hoped to be entertained.
Without even knowing what a films tagline is OR seeing a trailer, if it was made within the last 10 years and has either Lori Petty OR Lou Diamond Phillips as the "BIG NAMES" attached to the project, all I can say is RRRRRUUUUUUNNNNN!!!!
I don't need to dredge the storyline or plot premise out again, but let's just say that it's a movie, like someone else said, isn't sure what it wants to be.
Transporting a dangerous witness through the desert, a federal agent and his team realize the abandoned road they're traveling on is haunted by the ghosts of an accident years ago and must try to get out alive.Overall, this one was better than it really should've been though there's some big problems within this.
The opening shoot-out at the diner leads into the whole on-the-run premise that gets them through the rest of the movie makes this one quite interesting and every enjoyable by setting up a plausible situation for the other big action scenes along the way.
Well,Judging by the comments people either love this movie or hate it with a passion(though I really cant see why) Okay its not Shakespeare but its one hell of a fun flick to watch in my opinion,from Lou diamond doing his eery Native American vibe ala Young guns,to Steven Williams cracking in jokes to Lou and Lori halfway through that will not be lost on x-file fans in the know .Personally I found the camera movement when the prisoners attacked pretty cool,Although I can see how some people partial to sea sickness may be put out.
Attempting to avoid Russian gunmen trying to kill the witless witness, they take an old abandoned stretch of highway that has been dubbed "Route 666" after a chain gang accident happened there 35 years earlier.
Route 666 is the latest masterpiece by film director, William Wesley (Scarecrows, 1988).
Of course there are some mean, ugly zombies here who wants to make asphalt (yes, you heard right, asphalt) out of everyone foolish enough to travel there, because the road is cursed you see, some prisoners were killed here for a long time ago.
ROUTE 666 is an engaging little zombie B-movie from William Wesley, the director who brought us SCARECROWS back in the 1980s.
Although low budget, this film's a lot of fun thanks to some clever photography in the zombie scenes, an eeriely isolated desert setting, and a solid performance from Lou Diamond Phillips as the hero of the hour.
Two federal marshals named "Jack La Rocca" (Lou Diamond Phillips) and "Stephanie" (Lori Petty) are working for the witness protection agency and have orders to find and capture a fugitive witness named "Fred" (Steven Williams) and then to bring him to a Los Angeles court by 10 o'clock the next morning.
But awaiting them on Route 666 are "ghost-zombies" (for lack of a better word) whose only reason for existence is to kill those who travel on their road.
Federal agents Jack La Roca (Lou Diamond Phillips) and Stephanie (Lori Petty) track fugitive Fred Smith (Steven Williams, from JASON GOES TO HELL) along the desolate desert highways of the American southwest.
The acting (particularly Phillips and Williams) is pretty good, the story is acceptable (even though the subplot between Jack and his dead father doesn't come off at all and helps turn the end a bit silly), the desert and run-down drive-in theater locations are used fairly well and there's a good sense of humor and some witty dialogue.It's not a bad movie, but I had to deduct a couple of points for several reasons.
Worst zombie/horror movie i have seen..
Give you an example, the first time the zombie gang attacks our "heroes" of this movie one of the marshals is firing out of the SUV and it looks like they used a blue screen either for the character or for the background.
Get a load of this premise:federal agents taking a mob informant to a court date take an old road as a short cut to Los Angeles and find themselves being chased and attacked by the zombie spirits of a dead chain gang!
The film gets particularly interesting when a desert sheriff of the territory, Bob Conaway(LQ Jones)and his two deputies enter the picture with ulterior motives concerning the feds not leaving the Route 666 alive.Lou Diamond Phillips is ex Navy Seal and head Federal Marshal Jack La Roca whose father was one of the chain-gang who mysteriously vanished with a marked grave off the road of 666.
The cast is quite fun..the chemistry between Phillips, Petty & Williams helps because they make the most of their roles in such a wildly bizarre film.
Now THIS is a Road Horror Movie The Way it Should Be!.