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Saw this recently on a dvd. As a fan of After dark horror fest, this film was on my radar for a long time. Dark Ride is nothing special from a story standpoint. Every classic slasher trope and cliche imaginable was used in this film. The character traits, situations, and dialogue feel formulaic. After the opening murder scene, it takes a hell lottuva time for the thrill ride to jump start. There ain't any good kills except for one which i don't want to spoil. Also some of the scenes r filled with annoying flickering lights. Again like many 80s slasher films, we get to see characters doing stupid things. Splitting up, ample time to run but jus keep on screaming n crying, not taking an effort to fight back. We also get to see a psycho breaking his cuffs n escaping from a mental asylum like a piece of cake, etc. A hot girl wandering n hitchhiking in the middle of nowhere. I think this film seems to have been made in the wrong time period or mayb viewed by me in a totally wrong time.

Part of the popular After Dark Horror Film Festival (which included the remarkable horror film, "The Abandoned" among seven others), "Dark Ride" is a weirdly entertaining little slasher film heavily reminiscent of Tobe Hooper's "The Funhouse". The story follows a group of college friends who decide to go on a trip during spring break. While driving through New Jersey late one night, they have a bizarre encounter at a gas station, and later pick up a ditsy hitchhiker with a good stash of drugs. The kids decide to stop at an amusement park to check out the "dark ride", a horror ride that was closed down for years after two twin sisters were murdered there in 1989. The murderer is now institutionalized, but for these unlucky teenagers, he has escaped within the past two weeks. As they enter the ride and decide to spend some time messing around in there with all of the scary props and whatnot, they aren't aware of the real horrors that await them.

While this film was very obviously inspired by Tobe Hooper's slasher film, "The Funhouse", it honestly is nowhere near as good. But would one expect it to be any better? Nah, I don't think so. Besides this, "Dark Ride" is still an enjoyable little blood-soaked horror flick. The plot is beyond derivative, and the script is pretty jammed full with typical horror set-ups and clichés - we've seen it all before, plenty of times. Not much originality here, but oh well. While the story does lack any uniqueness or originality, it makes up for it with some good thrills and a full plate of some cheap (but clever) scares and violence. It's a pretty gory film, but I think that's what it was going for anyway so it works. We have plenty of gruesome stabbings, slashings, head-splittings, and a grossly clever decapitation that could likely become of cult status (I won't explain, you'll know it when you see it for sure). The sets inside the horror ride were really nicely done, and appropriately spooky. Amusement rides like that have an eerie thing about them anyway, so I love the setting.

The acting in the film is so-so. Jamie Lynn-DiSalca (of TV's "The Sopranos") is the heroine, and is just alright - not anything mind blowing, but passable enough with her performance. The male stars are actually the better actors in the film though, I'm sure some of you will recognize Patrick Renna of the '90s Disney film, "The Big Green", I knew I'd seen that face before. The rest of the cast isn't bad, but the performances were overall no more than average (if not a little below). When considering what type of movie this is though, the acting quality is almost irrelevant. The killer in the film is creepy, not because of his physical deformity, but more so because of his child-like porcelain mask that he wears throughout the film. I thought the 'twist' in the end was actually pretty good, it came totally out of nowhere for me, so I have to give that some credit because the writing there was pretty good.

Overall, "Dark Ride" is an enjoyable little slasher fest that isn't much more than that. It's formulaic, clichéd, and predictable in quite a few ways. But it still manages to be entertaining and fun aside from it's downfalls. Hardened horror buffs will know exactly what to expect, and will feel like they've seen it a hundred times. But if you enjoy a good old corny slasher flick, this weird little throwback to '80s style splatter pictures might be an enjoyable find. It isn't a great movie by any means, but I have to give it a half-and-half rating at least because it was pretty entertaining for what it was. 5/10.

I was extremely excited to see this movie (it was my most anticipated of the Horrorfest lineup) and I'm not too sure what I'm thinking about it at the moment. The plot was very basic and reminded me a lot of your average 80's slasher flicks, but theses are the films I grew up watching, so that's a huge plus. The dialog was far from perfect, but there actually were a few intentionally funny bits that had me and the rest of the theater cracking up. The acting wasn't too awful, but the character of Liz pretty much annoyed the hell out of me the entire time she was on screen. Actually, most of the characters were rude asses and I didn't really care if any of them were going to live or die. The stoner characters were by far the most amusing, though. There were a few scenes of decent gore including a very original beheading that I didn't see coming, and a few scenes built up decent tension and suspense. I also enjoyed the cinematography for the most part. It was very stylized and gave the film it's own unique feel even if the plot and circumstances were clichéd to the max. Also, the killer was very imposing and the mask he wore was really sweet. On the down side, the ending felt incomplete and the unnecessary "twist" was not surprising at all. Almost all of the suspense scenes didn't go anywhere as the killer like to toy with his victims too much and let them get away just in time. This got a little frustrating after a while and I just wanted to see some freakin' action already! Overall, Dark Ride was a much slower paced movie that the preview made it seem, the characters did all of the stupid things that you would expect them to, there was gratuitous nudity and blood (in a few parts) and the killer and setting were very creepy. It was a fun movie, but not one that I would rush out to see by any means of the imagination. I'd give it an above average 6.5/10.

In 1989, in New Jersey, two sisters are killed in a ghost train in the greatest attraction of the Asbury Park, the Dark Ride. The police arrest the serial killer that is sentenced to life in a mental institution; finds fourteen other bodies hidden in the spot and the justice shuts-down the attraction. Fourteen years later, a group of five friends and a hitchhiker decides to visit the amusement park that is offering free lodging in its reopening. Meanwhile, the psychopath escapes from the asylum and while the group is inside the Dark Ride, they are chased and killed by the murderer.

The slasher "Dark Ride" is a boring collection of clichés. Whatever the viewer may expect in a B-movie of the genre, he or she will find in this flick: bad acting, poor screenplay and budget, breasts, screams, the victims splitting from the group and killed one by one, "unexpected" twist etc. In the end, watching this flick is a pure waste of time. My vote is three.

Title (Brazil): "Trem Fantasma" ("Ghost Train")

Dark Ride

It starts out with two young girls being brutally murdered by a psychopath that lives inside an amusement park attraction call "Dark Ride". After being incarcerated for over a decade, the killer escapes from the mental hospital and takes refuge inside the now abandoned Dark Ride. Meanwhile, a group of college students on Spring Break decide to spend the night inside the abandoned amusement park ride for thrills, and to save money rather than spend it in a hotel. This is where they start getting knocked off one by one by the killer who now wears a childlike mask to conceal his facial deformity. I thought this was a decent flick. The writing was not great, but there was some great jokes within the film itself. There is a great kill scene that involves decapitation and oral sex. It was good stuff. I'll definitely be looking for this on DVD. There was also some recognizable actors within this film like Jamie-Lynn Di Scala (The Sopranos), and Patrick Renna (The Sandlot). The only problem I had with this movie was the ending. I think it tried too hard to have a twist ending like the Saw films, but it was worth the 1hr 50 min of my time.

After watching this film, I can see that the director borrowed elements of Halloween, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Tobe Hooper's : The Funhouse, which there was a number of similarities between The Funhouse and Dark Ride range from teenagers spending the night within the attraction to being hunted down by a deformed killer to the creepy puppets and horror props that create the eerie ambiance of the films.

Movie starts out in 1989 New Jersey. Two twin girls are murdered in a carnival ride called "Dark Ride"--a trip through various horror scenes. The killer is caught and sentenced to life imprisonment and the ride is closed down. Almost 20 years later a bunch of college kids decide (for no good reason) to break into the closed ride one night. And (wouldn't you know it?) the killer breaks out of his institution he's in. Three guesses where he goes.

This movie is positively insulting to any horror movie fan. The plot has been done to death and ALL the characters are by the numbers--there's the hot guy (Steve), the stoner (Jim), the movie quoting nerd (Bill), the hot blonde (Liz) and the hot brainy brunette (Cathy). They also pick up a blonde hitchhiker (Jen) who, for no reason other than to pad the running time, gives out a looonnngggg stupid monologue. Once these idiots get into the ride it just turns into a formula yawn-inducing mess with the killer stalking and killing them. Also there are these long sequences with these morons stumbling through the ride. They're not needed--they just eat up time. Really--this was done to death in the 1980s. Do we need a rehash of it? There's also a pointless nude scene which was so obviously and stupidly shoved in that I felt sorry for the actress. The gore scenes had plenty of blood but were incredibly faked.

Acting varies. David Rogers is terrible as Steve and Alex Solovitz as Jim wasn't much better (although he does try--Rogers doesn't). Renna is just OK as Bill and Andrea Bogart is WAY over the top as Jen. Her constant screaming and over acting got on my nerves fast. The only good acting was by Jamie-Lynn DiScala as Cathy. There is also a very good score and some cute directorial touches. But--all in all--this is a slow, boring horror film that you've seen hundreds of time before--only better. I fast-forwarded through a good portion of this. Skip it.

Dark Ride was exactly what it is suppose to be.. A throw back to the 80 horror movie of college age kids being killed and then the surprise twist ending.. It was not the greatest movie but I enjoyed it due to all the memories it brought back, from Funhouse (which it is almost a copy) to the burning, Friday the 13th, sleepaway camp, etc etc.. Acting was OK, and the premise was OK as well, How ever, premise is many years ago, two kids get killed, now years later, the killer escapes and this is when the kids decide to go and look at the ride.. Twist ending later, (its not bad but didn't quite explained how it just ended up that happen at that time, but all in all it was not a bad movie.. Compare to most of the movies of horror filmfest, this was actually one of the better ones..

I see all the not so great reviews, but I actually enjoyed it. Now, I don't think it is the greatest horror film. But for what it is, a slasher film, it works. The setting, cinematography absolutely steal the show tho, creepy killer, actors were ok, and a few cult worthy scenes is why I rate this an 8. I think it all works.

Note, I did say to me, I read another review that said they thought "Funhouse" was better, so it is all a matter of personal preference. I liked the setup for this movie, and I rather thought the killer was good too. However, for the most part it is a typical slasher movie with a bit of a predictable twist at the end. Still it moved rather quickly and was bloody so I won't complain to much...what does one expect from a slasher. The story, two twins ride the dark ride back in 89 and are murdered by a demented killer. Ride closes, but is getting ready for a reopen years later. Group of obnoxious college kids are heading for New Orleans for spring break or something. They decide to spend the night in the very said dark ride where the murders were committed (some of the party do not know this fact) and this is where they are picked off one after the other. So there you have it, nothing to different, you get you kills, your nudity and your extremely dumb kids and now you have your typical slasher movie. It even comes equipped with your rather stupid security guard. So the theme for the day when watching this is yelling at the television is "Don't go there stupid" and "what the hell are you doing?". I am also wondering how the heck is this fun house setup anyway? I mean at the beginning it is a ride with a track and carts, but when our gang gets there it seems more setup for a walk through as there is no way you can pick out some of the things you see if it was setup for a cart. Still fast moving and bloody so it was okay. Though these after dark movies are not really to graphic from what I have seen so far, nothing compared to theatrically wide released "hills have eyes" for example.

Absolutely wretched. Horrid acting, terrible story, unforgivable lighting, and not one of the victims was remotely likable. The villain was absent and undeveloped for so much of the movie one could not even even cheer for *him*!

The (so-called) story is about a bunch of (frighteningly aged) teenagers, who head out for a Spring Break vacation. They head out in an awesome van, run into a crazy old eccentric, and even pick up a crazy hitchhiker, before deciding to stay the night in a legendary 'Dark Ride', which is now being re-opened despite the fact that some nutjob murdered sixteen people there not even twenty years ago. Said nutjob escaped the loony-bin (complete with flickering lights and sadistic, stupid nurses)that very night! Unless you are as vapid, shallow, and stereotyped as the cast, you'll lack the ability to emphasize with any of them, instead praying for supposedly teen-aged souls to be snuffed out in horrible ways. Whomever conceived this abortion lacked the ability to create suspense, though, and instead you are simply bored to tears waiting for some sort of blood, mayhem, and pain. Please, hurt these people. Please. I can't.

"Each year, movies are produced which are never seen by the public..." Proclaims the Horrorfest ads. Yeah. For a reason. This cliché-ridden mess should never have received wide theatrical release, and instead lingered in the forgotten bargain bin of Wal-Mart.

Dark Ride is slick and professionally made but that's the only real good thing about it. For a start, the plot. A group of teens spend the night in a closed "dark ride" as a dare, not realising that a killer is lurking in the ride with them and there is no way out. I mean really, "The Funhouse" did this already about 20 years ago, and saying this is a tribute or something neatly avoids saying it basically just rips the whole thing off.

There's nothing else to say about the plot, so let me say that there a few more things this film doesn't do as well as it should. First of all the so called "dark ride" looks great - but so it should , it seems to be as big an aircraft hanger!! There's no way a real ride in such a run down resort as this one is supposed to be could be so enormous and with seemingly endless rooms devices and contraptions. Most of the time when the teens are wandering about they seem to be in various horror sets that take up whole rooms with no trace of any rail tracks on the floor to carry the ride's cars (it's a ghost train so where are the trains supposed to be going?).

Now sadly another thing that drags the film down is some real hammy acting by the central cast. Fits of screaming and sobbing, running into walls, shivering and blubbering, no histrionic emotion is left unused, and it soon becomes very tiresome. I really didn't care about any of the characters.

What the film does have is some effective, good old fashioned gore, with some surprisingly graphic slaughters. That and the fun of the wacky exhibits of the actual ride itself are the good points in what is otherwise a rather unimpressive movie.

Dark Ride features a gruesome opening sequence, a young woman being decapitated whilst delivering a blow job, and an outstanding vertical head slice—moments of gore which would automatically earn a movie a recommendation from me. Unfortunately, the film as a whole is so stale that it ends up as just one more reason for me to be wary of Lionsgate releases.

A blatant rip-off of Tobe Hooper's The Funhouse (1981), Dark Ride sees a bunch of obnoxious teenagers (hot women, some studs, and a guy who looks like an unhealthy, ginger Elijah Wood) being murdered by a hulking psycho after opting to spend the night in an abandoned fairground ride. Whilst The Funhouse wasn't exactly the greatest example of the slasher genre, it could at least boast a modicum of originality and a style of its own; writer/director Craig Singer, on the other hand, clearly has very few fresh ideas, and is content to plagiarise both the look and feel of Hoopers' film.

Less savvy horror fans unaware of the film's obvious cribbing might get a kick out of Dark Ride, but for those in the know, my advice is to save yourself some time and money and just enjoy the best bits on YouTube.

This movie was decent overall with good acting and cinematography plus the special effects were outstanding. The only thing I didn't like was the way the movie ended. As a bonus the DVD that I watched had a commentary track along with several featuretts and deleted scenes which are well worth checking out.

I have seen this movie about a week ago.And I can honestly say I never seen worst movie in my life!!I wouldn't recommend it even if it's the last movie you have.The plot is simple and I was able to make up what is going to happen next, and you know what I was right.I'm not going to write anything about the story itself because there is nothing to write about!!The one thing I'm going to say is that this is the first movie I couldn't stand and turned it off before the end!!Actors are trying very hard to make it work but there is nothing they could do to save this movie.For real, even if Bruce Willis,Al Pacino or Jack Nicolson were playing one of the main characters I wouldn't gave it one more star.

Dark Ride looked like it would be a good one, but don't expect dark, creepy horror when you go see it. There are too many hilarious moments for it to be anything other than yet another movie in the horror-comedy genre, although the execution was right on, which ultimately made it not only tolerable but enjoyable for me, usually a straight-horror type of girl.

Ms. Bogart completely stole the show, in my opinion, as the happening hitchhiker who is about the wackiest, funnest character I've ever seen in a movie of ANY genre, period. She should really look into getting herself more comedic roles, since it seems like she was born to be a comedy star! What great talent and excellent delivery! Her monologue when her character was first introduced in the plot had me in stitches. I was afraid somebody in the theater would throw their popcorn or soda on me, since I couldn't stop laughing even after she had finished that first passage.

Great entertainment, and a refreshing addition to the amazing "2006 Horrorfest - 8 Movies 2 Die 4" event! Watch out for the DVD releases of all the entries, and be sure to purchase them before they're all gone! You won't be sorry AND you'll be supporting R-RATED AND UNRATED HORROR MOVIES. HIP-HIP-HURRAH!

When going to a horror film festival touting films too "terrifying" for general release, I expect a little of what was promised. Dark Ride starts promising in it's exposition, then completely falls apart once the plot begins. The motivations of the story are in no way believable. The audience kept laughing at the completely unbelievable choices the characters make. They introduce a character gimmick that seems interesting, then do nothing with it. Nobody acts like these people. The camera doesn't seem to know what it wants to look at. Jamie-Lynn Sigler does a horrible job carrying the film. If you have seen the 80's horror throwaway, FUNHOUSE, then you've already seen this film... and FUNHOUSE is better (as unlikely as it sounds).