Red River Road is more than just another pandemic movie. A family of four (played by writer-director Paul Schuyler and his actual family) are under lockdown at home due to a global disease. The virus spreads through the internet (out of all the misinformation that was spread about COVID, this is one of the strangest) causing victims to lose control of reality and react with violent results.
The fact that the entire film was shot during the COVID lockdown and a real family serves as cast and crew sounds like a gimmick. It quickly becomes clear that this is not the case. Red River Road works off the paranoia and fear that everyone is all too familiar with. Wisely, Schuyler uses something that most of the audience will be able to relate to. The internet is an everyday part of most people. The idea that something that is so ubiquitous to life can be deadly is a frightening one.
The science fiction aspect of Red River Road brings an added dimension to the story. Fiction and reality are soon blurred adding suspense that is not normally found in this type of film. The use of the Schuyler’s real-life home movies are an interesting twist that further clouds what is real and what is not. It is almost impossible for the audience to get comfortable when they are never quite sure who they are watching.
The movie takes a premise that everyone is ready to move past and makes it a mostly compelling watch. There are some missteps along the way – sometimes it feels as if the story is not quite sure what direction it wants to go in – but nothing will cause anyone to turn away. Red River Road is one of the most unique pandemic movies to be found.
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