Five terrifying tales taking place on a road that leads… south…. it’s southbound…

Today we’re covering… 

Southbound! 

Movie Details:

• Release Date: 2015
• “Run”time: 1 hour and 29 minutes
• Where to watch it: Streaming
• Directed by: Roxanne Benjamin, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, David Bruckner
• Written by: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Roxanne Benjamin, Susan Burke
• Starring:
  • Chad Villella
  • Matt Bettinelli-Olpin
  • Dana Gould

Synopsis: Five terrifying tales taking place on a road that leads… south…. it’s southbound…

Open Stab Wounds (out of 10): 7

Review: The other day, Kevin and I were going over our list for this month. For whatever reason, we had the conversation about switching one or two of the movies around. This was right around the time we were talking about Creepshow and horror anthologies in general. This was about the time Kevin exclaimed, “Have you seen Southbound?!”

The answer he was seeking was not the answer I gave him.

So, in the talks about swapping movies around, Southbound found its way on our list for this month. 

This film has five different tales that include little hints and nods to each other. It starts in the middle of a mystery and by the end of it, you’ll get the answer to a few of them. It’s a film that wants you to rewatch it to catch all these hidden pieces (much like Trick R’ Treat does… but that’s a movie for another article). 

The first story is about two men being chased down by reapers. The second is a group of girls that get roadside assistance from a strange family. The third is a man trying to save his hit and run victim. The fourth is a tale of a brother looking for his sister. The fifth is a case of home invasion. 

What I really enjoyed was that the thread that tied each story together. Some of the transitions were more seamless than others, but they still followed a sort of supernatural logic that made sense. 

As with any anthology, some stories are better told than others. However, I felt that all five of these felt decently even in quality. Looking back at the five, I had a difficult time putting one strongly above the other. That even-keel delivery makes this a stronger anthology outing than others, for sure. 

I know that Kevin is a big fan of this film (one of the men in the first short looks like a shorter version of him, oddly enough), so I’m interested in reading what he has to say. It is a solid outing in the genre, and I will say that the way it wraps together at the end was a twist I saw coming but was still happy to see. 

I’ll add it to my list of anthology recommendations, needless to say.

KEVIN’S THOUGHTS:

When I found out that Brandon had not seen this, I insisted that we swap out something on the list to insert this. I watched this years ago when it came out and absolutely loved it. Each story stands on its own very well, while still maintaining an overarching story tying everything together. The effects were well done (especially that shot with the leg…), the scares were there, the creepy ambiance throughout, I just loved it all. If you love anthology horror, I feel this is a must see.

Thanks for reading and watching along with us! Be sure to keep up with all 31 days of our Halloween Horror Film coverage! 

Oh, and make sure to follow Brandon on Twitter @BarnyardCruz and Kevin @Solucid!