Film 28/52: Breakdown (1997)

I had never seen Breakdown before, but I'm a big Kurt Russell fan, and it seemed to bear more than a passing resemblance to Richard Matheson's 1953 short story "Dying Room Only" (which he adapted into a TV movie of the same name in 1973), so I thought it was a good candidate from screening in The Slaughtered Lamb.

Jeff Taylor (Russell) and his wife Amy (Kathleen Quinlan) are driving cross country for a new start in San Diego when their new Jeep breaks down in the middle of the desert. A passing trucker offers to drive them to a nearby diner so they can call a tow truck, but Jeff isn't comfortable leaving their new car with all their belongings unattended. He opts to stay behind while Kathleen goes with the trucker. While waiting, he realizes the problem was due to some loose wires, and is able to start the car. He drives to the diner, but there's no sign of Amy. He then drives towards the next town, and spots the truck that Amy left in. He forces the driver to pull over, but the trucker denies ever seeing Jeff or his wife before. Jeff flags down a passing sheriff, who investigates the truck, but doesn't find any signs of Amy or a struggle. He sends the trucker on his way, and encourages Jeff to file a missing persons report with his deputy. That sets the story in motion, and without giving up any more plot details, it's a wild ride to the end. 

While at times predictable, Breakdown is still a solid, edge-of-your-seat thriller. In addition to Russell and Quinlan (who sadly gets limited screen time, for obvious reasons), the supporting cast is quite good, led by the late J.T. Walsh as the mysterious trucker. 

Watching it inspired me to pop in Dying Room Only with Cloris Leachman and Dabney Coleman as a couple who stop at a roadside diner, only for the husband to disappear when the wife is in the restroom. Ross Martin and Ned Beatty are the only other people in the diner, and neither claims to know where he went. It's a fun film as well, and it's hard not to see it as an inspiration for Breakdown. We didn't watch Dying Room Only in The Slaughtered Lamb, so we're not counting it as our 'D' selection for the 52 Pick-Up series. As a TV movie, it seemed more appropriate to screen in theater B.  


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