Interstate 60: Episodes of the Road

You don’t find that many American family-friendly chill-out movies with such an elaborate and clever script. Gary Oldman, Christopher Lloyd, Chris Cooper and Kurt Russell deliver great performances in supporting roles. Interstate 60 is fresh and tasteful fun that didn’t make it to Czech cinemas and unfortunately remains completely unknown. (17.01.2012)

A very pleasant surprise indeed, a departure from the mainstream production that not only offers an interesting and novel plot and a whole host of great actors, but also often takes a good jab at American realities. The episode from the town of Marlow in particular is very apt, the screenwriter did not leave a single dry thread on the bloated American legal system. And the denouement at the very end is just awesome. As for the actors, I liked Chris Cooper the most and James Marsden, whom I knew only as Cyclops from X-Men, was a pleasant surprise. All in all a very interesting little film that can be highly recommended. (28.09.2004)

With the passage of time of about 5 years, Interstate 60 still seems to me to be one of the most original films of the beginning of the new millennium. However, I have to take away its full rating. The protagonist searches for himself in a "fairy tale" world where nothing is impossible, but he does not help himself do so by using his own reason. Yet thanks to a fortune-telling ball that has taken the form of a billiard eight, and a set of coincidences that have an obvious predetermination, there’s never a hint that any of it could go wrong. Then by the time he starts making decisions for himself, he’s got the hardest part out of the way, as if someone killed the prince’s dragon and all he had to do was climb the stairs and take the princess out of the tower, meaning the ending kind of fizzles out. But Euphoria, the city of lawyers, and Chris Cooper continue to be perfect. I can see what Bob Gale meant with this film (see the excitement after the first screening), but it doesn't seem as clever and witty as it pretends to be anymore. Maybe that's also because I’m the age of the main character and I see things a little differently. :) (24.10.2009)

A mysteriously tuned comedy, which can be loosely described as a combination of Anglo-Saxon black humor and an American family comedy about the search for one's own identity and their place in life. The main character desires a career as a painter but hasn't succeeded yet and his life is determined by his parents, who have directed him toward a career as a lawyer, following in his father's footsteps. However, one day a mysterious stranger appears, who can grant his wish, and while others have little imagination or are too consumer-oriented, Neil Oliver wishes to find the right life path. Thus follows a journey along mysterious highway No. 60 and visits to cities that are not known on current maps and which caricature some negative traits of contemporary American society. The protagonist passes through a city where synthetic drugs are legalized and freely distributed to everyone who wants them, only to later exploit the cheap labor of the addicts. In another city, lawyers reign, fabricating obscure accusations against visitors, to drain them in long-drawn Kafkaesque processes, which has a parallel in the complex American legal system and the effort to extract the maximum profit from various absurd accusations. It is occasionally truly funny, but the potential is far from being fully utilized because it treads on daring ideas within mainstream tracks and the protagonist seems to have stepped out of a teenage comedy, where he plays the handsome kid at the top of the class. Overall impression: 65%. (14.07.2011)

Bob Gale has originality, inventiveness, and ideas to spare, and it is precisely in this project that he was able let his imagination run wild. It can be quite crazy at times, but the showcase of acting talents is entertaining, as well as the unconventional storyline. (27.03.2005)

I had no idea what to expect, but any fears were quickly dispelled. Bob Gale has exploited his vast experience in screenwriting to make a film par excellence that not only delivers a great deal of smart entertainment, but also manages to make the viewer think with its unconventional concept. Is it better to know more or nothing at all? This is a question that can take us to many paths, but the one leading through the mysterious Highway 60 is certainly the most absurd, strange, and imaginative one possible. That's probably a bit too many adjectives, but they don’t do it justice. It's best if I put it simply: there’s the overall idea, the witty execution, and the performances, led by the amazing Gary Oldman, who was given an impeccable role worthy of truly the greatest actors and handled it far beyond all expectations. In my opinion, one of the most original films of the last decade, and it's a shame that it hasn't made it into the wider public consciousness yet. 90% (28.11.2012)

Definitely not the first time I've seen this, and hopefully not the last. I’ve grown quite fond of the wandering psychologist/part-time goldfish with a very peculiar sense of humor, O.W. Grant. All the stops on Interstate 60 were great, but my personal favorite was the town full of people with law degrees. The cast was very good, the humor was the right kind to keep it from becoming a silly farce, and I had a great time from start to finish. (08.01.2022)

At first, it's a bit of a strange film, but only after a few minutes does it start to unfold in its beautiful bizarreness, leaving you staring at what you're watching. And you'll stare even harder at how much you enjoy it. Is searching for answers boring? Not when there's a person around who can grant you one wish. And besides that, the main character has a series of fascinatingly twisted encounters. (11.04.2017)