Bienvenue en enfer

As the one who did the main title and effects for Highway to Hell I can only answer this way...no budget...some cheesiness intentional. I must say I had a lot of fun trying to build all these effects with a $1.98 (almost). Didn't think it would turn out as funny and cultish as it did. Patrick Bergin, a really fine actor, is worth watching. Not easy acting under 40lbs. of make up.

Charlie Sykes (Chad Lowe) and his girlfriend Rachel Clark (Kristy Swanson) are traveling to Las Vegas to secretly get married to each other. They decide to follow through a secondary road, and while fueling their car in "Sam's Last Chance" gas station, they are advised by the owner and attendant Sam (Richard Farnsworth) to not sleep after the second tree in the road. They fall asleep in the car, and a policeman arrests Rachel. Charlie returns to the gas station, and Sam tells him that she has been arrested by a Hellcop, and he has to go to hell if he wants to rescue his fiancée.

"Highway to Hell" is a gem underrated in IMDb. I have seen this cult-movie at least six times, and I really love it. I have an used VHS, and I do not know why this movie has never been released on DVD. The clumsy baby face hero Chad Lowe has a great adventure trying to bring his girlfriend back from Hell. The now famous Ben Stiller, in the beginning of his career, is very hilarious in the role of a cook, and also as Attila the Hun at the table with Hitler and Cleopatra. The special effects and the music score are very good and I really recommend this movie for fans of a trash and funny original adventure. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Estrada Para o Inferno" ("Highway to Hell")

Note: On 19 September 2010, I saw this film again.

Note: On 19 August 2013, I saw this film again.

Note: On 02 November 2020, I saw this film again.

You have to be in the right mood. It helps if you know what to expect. If you see this on cable, SNAG IT! Cameos by the Stiller clan are priceless. Good fun! Why does this have a rating of 5.1? No sense of humor! Why is this not on DVD? As a dealer of rare VHS (and DVD) the answer is standard. The copyright owner has gone out of business / has not had any licensing offers and is not prepared to reprint and market on their own. There are thousands of such titles which is why there is a flourishing industry of reprint labels like Alpha Video and many others. We make a good living finding and selling existing copies of movies like this. This is one of many titles that I had not heard of but the high demand for used VHS copies got my attention. I have discovered many enjoyable unknown gems this way.

Highway to Hell starts off as a campy 80's ish horror flick. It grabs you from the start and then holds on when our stars jump over the real world divide. The concept is ingenious and the characters are fresh. There are some great sight gags and loads of funny lines. THis is definitely better than the 5.7 rating here......I just left a review for 'The Prodigy' and I am FLABBERGASTED that it has the same rating on IMDb. This is EASILY a better film. Patrick Bergen and Chad Lowe are great adversaries and on originality alone this film deserves at least a 6-6.5 here. Pure unadulterated 'B' movie genius. Wish I could find a copy to rent. 3.5 out of five on my 'b' movie marathon list. It is very strange and not for all tastes, but HTH will forever be a cult-classic. 65/100

I think I saw this movie for the first time on USA Up All Night, because it totally seems like the sort of thing they'd have played. It's a bit cheesy and campy, but if you like that sort of thing, then you'll probably love it. It seamlessly blends elements from many varied genres into a quirky comedy-fantasy, though I think maybe some people were a bit confused or put off by the lack of clearly defined genre conventions. In some ways, it's similar to Army of Darkness, though it lacks many of the over-the-top gags and one-liners of that movie.

If you're a fan of Brian Helgeland, you really owe it to yourself to check this out. It's one of my favorites of his, though I suspect he'd probably prefer that we just forgot about his early work (Nightmare on Elm Street 4, 976-EVIL, Highway to Hell) and concentrate rather on his Academy Award-nominated work, such as Mystic River. Anyways, the story is about a kid who has to rescue his girlfriend, after she's abducted by the Hell Cop (Friday the 13th Part VI's C.J. Graham), who takes her to hell. So, right away you've got an actor who played Jason Vorhees and the writer of Nightmare on Elm Street 4. If that's not enough to sell you on this movie, I'm not really sure what else to say, except that Gilbert Gottfried plays Hitler, in a brief cameo. The movie plays out as part road trip through Hell, part comedy, and part thriller. The parts in Hell are creative, imagining it as a mirror image of our world, except somewhat more bizarre and surreal, like something from Mad Max, complete with biker gangs and vast expanses of blasted wasteland (probably Death Valley).

Come to think of it, maybe the reason why I like this movie so much is because it combines Mad Max with Army of Darkness. If that concept appeals to you, I can't recommend this highly enough. If, on the other hand, you're thinking that it sounds ridiculous, maybe it's best that you don't waste your time, as it seems that this movie isn't really beloved by all. Perhaps it's a bit too quirky.

I think that if it were given a chance, it could easily develop into a cult favorite.