That was an excellent one.

Memorable, crazy movie

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Hell's Highway: True Story of Highway Safety Films (2003) ** (out of 4)Pretty disappointing documentary taking a look at the Highway Safety Films of the 60s and 70s. I was really looking forward to this thing but nothing really worked out too well. The interviews were rather boring, which is what really killed this. The film picks up in the final fifteen-minutes when we hear debates on whether these films did any good or not. I personally found the actual videos to be nothing more than offensive, tasteless scare tactics. Footage included one film where cops flips over a car to discover a dead baby that has been smashed to death. There are countless other bloody clips where people's heads are stuck through windshields and so on.

"Hell's Highway: The True Story of Highway Safety Films" is more like a historical recollection of the famed Highway Safety Productions, which is largely responsible for setting in motion a particular type of educational film. With interviews primarily from Earl Deems, John Domer, and John Butler, this movie traces the beginnings of the highway safety films to Mansfield, a small town in Ohio. As the legend goes, at least according to those in this documentary, it started with a man who came to town photographing fatal car accidents. Eventually, this man joins with others doing the same, and they team up with the Mansfield, Ohio Police Department, gathering this footage of real car crashes, which eventually served the setting for at least three decades worth of educational films emphasizing auto safety.These movies have become a kind of unverified myth for the modern day high school driver's education student. The tales of Red Asphalt and such which have never been seen, but only rumored about. The films of Highway Safety Productions were a hybrid of educational films in their day, at least according to this documentary, because they were basically using footage from real-life auto crashes, mixed with some poorly produced, generic storyboarding to provide some structure and linear storytelling, as a scare tactic for safe driving. The filmmakers assure that these films were most successful, but I would be interested to see that, given the academic theorists positions on the problems of using scare tactic campaigns, whether these films were actually successful in reducing auto accident rates (overall or among a particular age group) in Mansfield, Ohio or other small towns where these films were shown (I suggest small towns because it would be easier to do that kind of statistical, historical analysis). I do disagree with the filmmakers that teenagers today are too desensitized to violence these days to appreciate the kind of reaction (and presumably, caution), these films were intended to elicit. I have seen my share of violent films and played my share of violent video games (especially, Grand Theft Auto), but I could not seem to get through the three full-length driver's ed films provided in the DVD package without getting choked up over the horrible sights of mangled bodies and such.This movie does tend to run quite long, and is introduced by a series of somewhat disorganized anecdotes which lay the historical foundation. Again, it is largely a story of the Highway Safety Production company rather than simply, highway safety films in general. As such, we learn a great deal more about the company's additional ventures into other forms of educational productions such as police and trucker training videos, which were initiated after the success of their driver's education films. There are also some moments of attempted scandal and sensationalism inserted there at what seemed like an unusual break in the film, which was unusual and probably, unnecessary as it is told in a way that makes you question the source.Nonetheless, viewers interested in scare tactics campaigns (it does not do much analysis about the success of these films on driver accident rates and such), or just looking for information on a rather novel documentary subject, are advised to give it a try. Again, the DVD package gives the viewer an opportunity to see the old films for himself as it includes three full-length versions plus additional excerpts.

A great idea,but a rather shaky production.Great interviews with members of the Foundation,and video archivists.They missed the chance to possibly interview those who appeared in the films (as victims) and those who recreated scenes in their films (like Wheels of Tragedy).But overall,thank goodness this genre has been given a new voice.Kids today laugh at death and blood.Society has felt it better to shield kids from the reality of death and agony rather than shock them/damage them,with the truth.Death isn't pretty,but its reality.Many thousands die every year,and millions are injured....what better subject to showcase than the fact that car crashes kill and maim American lives.For those who feel that sacraficing even one soldier in Iraq or Afganistan is wrong,just stop and think....how many Americans die in just ONE day on our roads? And nothing our "mighty" SUVs,pickups,semis,muscle cars or exotic imports can prevent.People die in EVERY vehicle,in every state and in every town.And over time,in every street.Think about that next time you tool around town talking on the cell phone or adjusting your radio knob.Take the advice these films were meant to give...think,use your head,and fear for your life.You will be a much safer driver as a result.

"Hell's Highway" is a documentary focusing on the men who created the now-infamous highway safety films of the mid-twentieth century, in particular those involved with the Highway Safety Foundation (HSF) during its life as a procurer of the macabre as an educational tool. The film's director, Bret Wood, manages to capture the audience's interest without ever guiding their thoughts or beliefs towards a discernible argument or standpoint. We as an audience are never led to think or feel in a certain way about the film's subject, a characteristic that will be lauded by some and looked down upon by others. While the neutral position taken by Wood may seem like a noble endeavor, it unfortunately causes the documentary to be hollow at its center, and the viewer is left to feel that the only reason he or she is watching it is to see the usually shocking safety films contained within. Doc lovers will probably recognize the lack of form that this hollowness forces upon the film, causing it to not live up to expectations, while the casual viewer may find greater entertainment value in it, but will more than likely still recognize the empty space at the film's core.Another flaw of this film is its over-reliance on clips from the actual highway safety films produced by the HSF and its lack of supporting evidence and arguments from interviews. The interviewees seem like they have a lot to say, but are never given the opportunity to fully express their ideas and thoughts behind the making of the safety films. Instead, Wood inserts usually the most shocking scenes from the films being mentioned for sheer entertainment purposes, as if he were afraid that the audience would lose interest in the doc's subject matter.In addition to this, the film suffers from being overly-long and drawn out. At a running time of approximately ninety minutes, this film sets out to stretch a subject a little too thinly over a lengthy period of time. It is more than likely due to Wood's hesitance to take a stance on his subject that causes the film to seem extended beyond its limits. One cannot help but wondering what the film would be like if it followed a more rhetorical or dramatic arc, rather than focusing on interview footage that has a tendency to beat around the bush, so to speak. The film's final third suffers the most from this forced extension of time and topic as it skews into mentioning the other safety films produced by the HSF as it began to expand that had little or nothing to do with automobile accidents or cautions. The section on the HSF's rumored involvement with pornographic films seems like a complete digression and an ignorance of the doc's central idea and topic. And while the safety films dealing with shoplifters, child molesters, and the like are interesting in their own right, their presence in the film as a whole seems awkward and out of place.Overall, this is an interesting film dealing with an extremely interesting subject. Its untraditional and neutral approach to its subject is a detriment, though, as is its overly-long running time. As a documentary, it succeeds on some levels but fails on more, but as an opportunity to see some of the most shocking and amazing highway safety films ever produced, it will definitely not disappoint.