Hell Ride DVD Review

The Flick

I dig exploitation films.  I like looking at half naked women enveloped by a world of sex and violence.  I enjoy drive-in fare that targets my penis as well as my brain.  I like these movies because they don’t try to be bad, they just are, which in turn makes them good.  Larry Bishop’s Hell Ride tries so hard to be bad that it reaches that goal, and not in that good way I mentioned in the previous sentence.  

The flick follows the exploits of a biker gang led by Pistolero (Larry Bishop), The Gent (Michael Madsen), and Comanche (Eric Balfour) as they search for a key that will ultimately tear their gang apart. That’s all anyone really needs to know about Hell Ride, because getting anything else out of Bishop’s uneven directing could cause headaches.  The performances in this flick are stiff and uncomfortable, especially Bishop’s Pistolero who always seems like he’s struggling with a tough decision (yes, get the hair cut).  I’m not trying to pick on Bishop, but it’s hard to believe that with this amazing cast of actors the performances would be so uneven.  One department Bishop didn’t deliver an uneven performance in was the ladies.  That’s right folks, Hell Ride is full of super hot, super naked biker babes!  There is more hot ass in this flick than you can shake a stick at, and most of them shed their clothes as soon as they grace the screen.  

So besides the hotties, and a few kick ass action sequences I really didn’t care for Hell Ride. But if your a fan of biker exploitation flicks this might be your type of movie.  I just don’t think the average movie fan is going to want to drop the coin to add this one to their collection.  I would recommend renting it though (the ladies are totally worth the price of the rental).  Hell Ride was filled to the rim with killer babes, but it wasn’t a killer film.

The DVD

Audio:  The audio was loud and clear, and the music was pretty cool.

Video:  Looked good, I’d say that the transfer was solid.  

Special Features

Commentary:  I have to say that I enjoyed the commentary track for this flick.  Bishop was a lot of fun to listen to, and he provides a wealth of information concerning the production.  Worth listening to all the way through.

The Making of Hellride:  This short behind the scenes feature is pretty solid, and again Bishop is a really likable guy, I wish I would have dug the movie more than I did.  

The Guys of Hellride:  Interviews with the male cast members.  This was also a cool little feature that I enjoyed quite a bit.

Michael Madsen’s Video Diaries:  A neat diary shot by Madsen during the production.

The Choppers of Hell Ride:  Focuses on the bikes and the actors that rode them.  This is another really cool feature, that touches on one actor that learned most of his riding skills on the set.  

Overall I didn’t love Hell Ride, but I really dug the special features.  I also really connected with Bishop after listening to the commentary and watching the special features.  He’s a cool guy that really cares about this film.  I wish I would have dug it as much as he does.