Uma Carona para o Inferno

While I had actually never heard about this 1990 thriller titled "Midnight Ride", as I stumbled upon it by random chance here in 2025, of course I opted to watch it. Why? Well, because I hadn't already seen it, and also because it had Mark Hamill on the cast list.

Writers Russell V. Manzatt and Bob Bralver put together a fair enough script and storyline. It was a pretty straightforward script and narrative. Though, I will say that I was adequately entertained throughout the course of the 88 minutes that the movie ran for.

The acting performances in the movie were good, and I was especially thrilled with Mark Hamill's somewhat psychotic performance as the killer Justin Mckay. The movie also had Michael Dudikoff and Robert Mitchum on the cast list, so there were some familiar faces.

This was a watchable movie, for sure, but hardly an outstanding thriller experience. Nor is it a movie that warrants more than a single viewing. And truth be told, it was solely because of Mark Hamill's creepy performance that the movie stayed afloat.

My rating of director Bob Bralver's 1990 movie "Midnight Ride" lands on a five out of ten stars.

The basic plot, A young Russian woman named Laura (Savina Gersak) leaves her husband who also happens to be a cop, later on she picks up a young hitchhiker Justin McKay (Mark Hamil) who surprise surprise turns out to be a psychopath and takes her hostage while he goes on a killing spree so he can meet up with his Doctor, while her cop husband is in hot pursuit.

Midnight Ride is a bit of a strange movie, as it tries to blend Action and slasher together and it works most of the time, as I found this movie a hell of a fun ride, although it does having plot holes and lacks suspense, but all that can be forgiven. Mark Hamil plays a part a million light years away from Luke Skywalker here playing a psychopath, which I rather enjoyed, although it was a bit hammy and unconvincing at times. Michael Dudikoff plays the cop husband pretty well, I found him very charming and capable as the leading man. But I didn't find Savina Gersak very convincing at all, she's supposed to be the terrified victim, but I found her very weak and disappointing and I think that this movie would have been better if they had a better actress in that part.

The film has some really great action moments. In particular, there's a terrific Mardi Gras Massacre sequence that's one for the books. Some of the action toward the end is hit and miss (Dudikoff's encounters with the Pentangle in the swamp is kinda anti-climatic) but the finale is thoroughly awesome. It also manages to have its share of solid action beats (the bus chase was pretty good). Plus, it moves along at a steady clip, which helps make you forget about the lapses in logic. But overall I found this movie fun and entertaining, the scenes with Mark Hamil are the real highlight even if they were hysterically funny, like when he tries to attack a female victim, But I did enjoy the final scenes between him and Dudikoff in the steam factory and the hospital scene.

So all in all okay Midnight Ride is a copy of the far superior Hitcher, but it's not a bad one and this should get a DVD release, because I enjoyed it.

Actor Mark Hamill as a sickly disturbed psychotic killer on the road. No way! The boyishly sweet looking Hamill is obviously trying to break away from that typecast his been associated with and this cheap b-grade Cannon action flick gave him an opportunity to do that. Well he lets it all out in an unconvincingly hammy and spaced-out portrayal with such non-apologetic aplomb. It's quite a sight…. A frightening one too, but not in that threatening way. But there's something random about it that just compels. Starring opposite of him is a surprisingly sound and rugged Michael Dudikoff and coming between the two is a feisty Savina Gersak. Making a brief and all-too tired turn is Robert Mitchum. Who looks like he'd rather be somewhere else and its understandable. I can't deny that I didn't enjoy it, as for an active nocturnal road chase movie with cat and mouse elements it was thrillingly executed. Never did it lose any of that gritty energy and hysterical nastiness from Bob Bralver's assertive direction. Sure it can be laughable, and contrived with its weak psychological front. But it's all about leaving a constant pile of destruction and a workable death toll. Still there's a real creepiness in certain sequences and atmospheric lighting, but it's mostly broken up by some ridiculously over-the-top set-pieces. That also goes for the out-of-nowhere shock ending. The material has actually dreamt up something that's original and could've been tightly menacing (as it has a wife fleeing her committed police husband, while unknowingly offering a ride to a unstable psycho), but how they go about it loses the possibility of gelling the two threats and dissolves into something quite standard with the opening half of the story's motive coming off dispensable. Fair b-grade action romp.

Not bad action film, with Dudikoff in relentless pursuit of his runaway wife. Seems she has had no trouble giving psychopath Hamill a ride to his Psychiatrist, Mitchum. This movie has plenty of truck size plot holes. Cops are portrayed merely as targets for Hammil's knife or gun. Realism flies out the window early, never to return. Nevertheless, things seem to move along at a frantic pace. If you can forgive the sparse character development, just go along for the ride with your brain in neutral. What Robert Mitchum is doing in this film is a huge question? His part could easily been played by any no name actor. Worth watching for Hammil's over the top performance, but just barely. MERK.

This movie is GREAT! For anyone who doesn't like it, doesn't get it. And, oh yeah, get a sense of humor (a black one would be best). No matter how many times she escapes, Mark Hamill just keeps showing up. Driving the bus was my favorite. His insane driving is ridiculous, but it's hysterical that his hands are always at 10 & 2! The exploding cars had us rolling. Also, how many cars is her husband, the cop, going to steal? My favorite was off the moving car hauler. Appreciate it for what it is, & you'll have a good time.