fokkusu1991 Toad Road is absolutely mislabeled as a horror film, and the DVD case synopsis is extremely misleading as the vast majority of the film has nothing to do whatsoever with the literal Toad Road urban legend highlighted on the synopsis (and for which the movie is named).However, there is something worthwhile that can be taken from it if you've not been duped into believing this would actually be traditionally horrific or even slightly scary.Toad Road, as the urban legend in the film, is entirely metaphorical. It isn't a "real" place - It's what happens when a person goes down the road of drug addiction.The first "gate," which causes the feeling of being watched, can be attributed to either paranoia as a side effect of certain recreational drugs or the fear of being caught doing drugs.The second gate, where you hear voices, can obviously be attributed to hallucinations, but the specific mention of the voices being family/friends "disappointed" in you refers to those around you appalled at your decision to begin drug abuse.The third gate, where you see things that aren't real, is again referring to hallucinations but probably also the delusional view that your life will be fine.The fourth gate, where everything starts to die, refers to one's physical body after long-time drug abuse - this metaphor is especially obvious to those who have seen time-lapse photos of meth addicts.The fifth gate, where time distorts and things seem unreal, is when the continual drug use makes you start going insane literally all the time, and your life becomes an incomprehensible mess of harsh reality and horrifying fantasy.The mention that "no one's ever gotten to the 6th gate" is because the 6th gate is the point of no return. No one ever gets back from the 6th gate because once you're there it's when the body and mind finally succumb to what the drugs have put you, mentally and physically, through.The 7th and final gate, of course, is death.Sara's belief that Toad Road leads to something good is the blind, naive assumption that continual drug use will always take one to a higher, better state of mind - Instead of resulting in pain and eventual death.Toad Road is not a horror film - It is a cautionary metaphorical tale. While I personally wish the DVD case wasn't so amazingly misleading, it was still interesting... though it would be a lot more so to people who actually seek out this sort of film instead of a horror film.2/10 for horror, but 8/10 for metaphorical cautionary tale. The average of those is 5/10, thus my rating.

suite92 The film opens to a group of drug addicts having fun with each other while getting high or coming down. That's about the first 45 minutes worth of 75 minutes total.James and Sara go to Toad Road to see what's there. Supposedly there are seven gates, and if one goes through all seven, one gets entrance to hell.At the first gate, one can feel something pulling at you, and wanting you gone, but you cannot see them. At the second gate, one starts to hear things. Just after the third gate, one starts to see things; the voices become visible. Just after the fourth gate, things around you start to die; leaves start to fall and the like. Just after the fifth gate, everything gets cold, but you feel warm and powerful.At this point in the description by Sara, it had started snowing, and a CGI gate was visible. James catches up to Sara. The narration describing the gates continues. Time supposedly changes after passing through the fifth gate.At this point, James is separated from Sara. He looks for her a bit, and calls her name repeatedly. He gives up and takes a long walk home. His keys do not work. After some time he gets in touch with two of his druggie friends. They tell him that he has been gone for months. No one cares that he has been gone that long, but Sara is a different matter since she has roots with people and institutions that care about her.Do we see Sara again? Does James do anything to find her?-----Scores------Cinematography: 0/10 Bipolar, to say the least. On the one hand, some long stretches are hideously bad: fuzzy, poorly lit, poorly framed, overexposed and alternately underexposed, shaky. On the better side, sections of the film have fine focus, good depth of field, nice framing and no camera shake.Sound: 3/10 A real detriment.Acting: 0/10 Non-existent.Screenplay: 2/10 Next to worthless. There is about 90 seconds of plot here, yet the film drags on endlessly for 75 minutes. Filming drug addicts putting out their cigarettes in vomit is of no value whatsoever.

Snaggletooth . I read the bad reviews here and I was determined to find something of worth in Toad Road, really I was. But in a nutshell, it's true it offers almost nothing to the viewer. The first 45 minutes of it's running time (of 75) is basically just a bunch of student types experimenting with recreational drugs. It's not unpleasant to watch, and I even found it kind of relaxing. You'll feel like a fly on the wall of some hipster party as the chemicals are passed around and you marvel at your observations. It's also acted pretty well too. But what has been claimed here already is very much true - almost nothing else takes place. The last 35mins involve two of the group heading into some woods in search of some urban legend of 7 gateways to other realms. They take some more drugs and sit and wait for darkness to come. The film then cuts to the male character waking up on the floor, alone, with his female friend missing and when he heads back to civilization we are lead to believe that many months have now passed and the girl is being searched for. It's all very vague however and there is no tension or chills involved which I expect was the intention. This film may be the first of Elijah Woods movie company meanderings so I hope things get (much) better. I've heard he's a big horror fan, so that's good news, but Toad Road is one big bore I'm afraid.

filmbizarro I admit it, I get a kick out of movies that distort reality. I don't mean strictly surreal movies, even though I like that too, but movies that take on a rather realistic style and then twist it around - much like the previously reviewed "Ape" did. "Toad Road" takes a slightly more subtle way of things, especially since it deals with drugs as well. Yes, if a movie deals with drugs I am more likely to accept the way it bends reality as still being realistic. F*ck it, I don't need to explain why, do I? It's drugs! You all kids do it, so you know exactly what I mean.The movie is based around the legend of the Toad Road, a long road through the woods that has 7 different gates. It has been said that no one has came to the 7th gate, and that after the 5th some seriously strange things start to happen and that's the furthest anyone has gotten. A group of friends get high in all the ways they can, and just seem to enjoy the life they are living, albeit going nowhere. The movie is about James and a girl he meets, Sara. Sara sees the drug use as something bigger, and after James tells her about the Toad Road her curiosity is piqued. She needs to go there, she has to try and reach the final gate. She manages to get James with her, and that's the last time Sara is seen.The movie is very real and simple a lot of the time, but it still manages to get creepy once they go to the Toad Road. The last part of the movie is spent only with James and it's hard not to reflect on the past events in a similar way to how James does it. It feels even more odd knowing that the actress playing Sara, Sara Anne Jones, has since passed away. Her part in this movie is so important to keep it steady - James Davidson is fantastic too, but he needs a co-star that carries just as much strength, and Sara did that. It's a shame to lose someone like her."Toad Road" brings up a lot of questions while still working as a creepy story of a missing person. Most of all it's existentialistic and the use of drugs in the movie is just spot on to put every piece where it belongs. The movie doesn't need to go over board with anything, and the pace becomes one of the most important things about it. It's slower than your typical Hollywood movie, but still not a movie that literally struck me as "slow". It's hard to describe it, but it's a movie that keeps its audience busy and hooks us in to the experience. It's a movie that makes you question your choices, your past, your future, your curiosity and your mortality, and that's probably one of the biggest compliments a movie can get. A really strong effort!More reviews at FilmBizarro.com