30 Miles

This film is a perfect example of how entertaining a film can be without all of the Hollywood "tricks" like gratuitous violence, gratuitous sex and overkill with special effects. These film makers are very brave and I applaud them. Everyone involved in this project was "working without a net" and they succeeded masterfully. A thought provoking script and riveting performances that kept me on the edge of my seat and guessing what will come next. I know this was a low budget, art house film. They didn't have "A" list talent, or all of the bells and whistles of a major studio release. But they made an entertaining, thought provoking psychological thriller out of words and basically 2 guys in a car. Very brave! I hope more people have a chance to see this film. Well done!

This was a good thriller with Lawerence Hilton Jacobs originally from the TV show Welcome Back Carter. He has come a long way in his acting. Although this movie is titled 30 Miles it covers a lot of action in this hour and a half movie. You are always left wondering who is the good guy and who is the bad guy! The scenes between the two passengers jumps back and forth between intense confrontations and male bonding. I never guessed the ending but WOW what an ending. I would recommend this movie to rent or buy. I found this movie at Blockbuster and will plan on renting more of this type of movie. Another movie I plan on renting next is Severed Ties. This is about two brothers caught in a moral dilemma.

I am not in the habit of writing a review for a film that I don't like but I was honestly shocked at how horrible this movie was.

I couldn't tell what was more atrocious. The horrible acting or the laughable script. I love the idea that Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs is finally getting a starring vehicle but his performance here made me see why he never took off in Hollywood. It was truly THAT bad.

The writing was wooden and incredible. Normal people don't speak like these guys did. They go from laughing to crying to anger in minutes. Why would you beg a hitchhiker to get back in your car after 20 minutes of driving? Why would you reveal such incriminating details of your life story after knowing someone for an hour? Why would you allow a stranger with a gun in your car?

Horrible. And the camera work didn't help, either. I'm no expert but here's a tip: when showing a gritty, close up scene, try taking the camera off sticks and going hand-held to get an edgier, more nervous feel. I felt like I was watching public access theater for a while there.

Overall, this is a good concept for a film. The execution, however, drowned the story in a sea of amateurish and obvious mistakes that kids in their second month of film school are warned against.

I wish the actors and crew of this film long, fruitful careers in the entertainment industry but you'll need to bury the masters of this stinker for that to occur. Two words: Alan Smithee.

Was there uneven acting? Absolutely! Was it believable in every twist and turn of the dialog? Not really. Yet, this movie is a prime example of the sum being bigger than it's parts. Even if the acting is at times waaay overwrought, and the changes in the mood of the conversation occasionally seemed artificial, it still worked for three reasons: 1) The characters, even if not totally believable, were interesting 2) you couldn't predict where the movie was going, and 3) it never got pretentious. If you can handle the movie's shortcomings, ie disregard some of overacting, this movie is, with what very little it actually has beyond a GREAT concept and story, and mediocre execution, immensely entertaining, and ultimately works because at least some of the gripes that you might have underway, makes sense at the end. Had the acting been better, and some of the more outrageous turns in the conversation been cut or altered, this movie could have been a masterpiece, but as it is, still ends up being more than worth seeing.

Somehow couldn't take my eyes off this movie. Some person's strange idea of what characters they envision might actually act like.

An idea that bears no resemblance to reality. Its a sorta childish attempt at something deep and meaningful, but its so contrived that I just kept watching it in amazement, wondering what simpleton put it together.

It reminds me, actually, of this pathological liar I once worked with, that would concoct the most ridiculous transparent lies in order to avoid simple tasks, lies so absurd that I felt actually bad for him, to wonder what world he lived in that he could dream this stuff up and then actually try and execute it.

It was somehow mildly entertaining, I did actually watch the whole thing... Like I said, a car crash.