Quicksilver Highway (1997) (TV)

User Rating:

4.5/10   

Director:

Mick Garris

Writers (WGA):

Clive Barker (short story "The Body Politic")
Stephen King (short story "Chattery Teeth")

Release Date:

13 May 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Plot:

Two tales of terror, told by a travelling showman.

Plot Keywords:

Chattering Teeth | Hand | Hitchhiker | Car Accident | Dust Storm

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Christopher Lloyd	...	Aaron Quicksilver
Matt Frewer	...	Charlie / Dr. Charles George
Raphael Sbarge	...	Kerry Parker / Bill Hogan
Missy Crider	...	Olivia Harmon Parker / Lita Hogan
Silas Weir Mitchell	...	Bryan Adams
Bill Nunn	...	Len
Veronica Cartwright	...	Myra
Bill Bolender	...	Scooter
Amelia Heinle	...	Darlene
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Clive Barker	...	Anesthesiologist
Cynthia Garris	...	Ellen George
Kevin Grevioux	...	Police Sergeant
Christopher Hart	...	Lefty
William Knight	...	Rhinoplasty Man
John Landis	...	Surgical Assistant
Shawn Nelson	...	Driver
Sherry O'Keefe	...	Harriet DaVinci
Dana Waters	...	Hand Chaser
Constance Zimmer	...	Female Patient

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Germany:16 | Australia:M | UK:15 (video premiere)

Company:

20th Century Fox Television

Movie Connections:

References The Addams Family (1991)

Doesn`t Feel Like A TVM

It`s misleading to describe QUICKSILVER HIGHWAY as a TV movie because it feels like two episodes of an anthology show like THE TWILIGHT ZONE stuck together . By that I mean Mr Quicksilver relates the stories at two different locations , a desert(ed ) highway and a funfair . Is there any reason for this apart from the denounements ?

As for the stories themselves CHATTERING TEETH is probably the better but only when it`s being played straight devoid of its silly supernatural tones. Giving a ride to a hitch hiker who seems to border on the psycotic , yeah a good premise that ends up being ignored which seems to have been a problem with Stephen King stories for many years

I did read Clive Barker`s THE BODY POLITIC many years ago . It`s an imaginative story and one which I couldn`t help admiring Barker`s writing skills . However it`s one of those fantasy tales that is unfilmable since a revolution involving hands will come across as totally bizarre and unintentionally funny when realized on screen . So I`ve got to disagree with the chap who said THE BODY POLITIC is both tongue in cheek and misunderstood - No it`s not , it only comes across that way down to using a different meduim to what Barker envisaged

And also got to repeat my criticism that this " TVM " feels like a failed anthology series with two episodes stuck together