Films like "Southbound" make me mad. Seriously mad, even, because they enhance the dreadful misconception that horror movies nowadays don't require a good script or a coherent plot if there's a cool gimmick (in this case interlacing segments) and lots of gory special effects. What makes these so-called writers and directors (including the collective "Radio Silence" or whatever they call themselves) think they are permitted to just put together a bunch of semi-processed ideas and underdeveloped storylines, but then sell it as a brimful anthology? I'll be the first to admit that the concept of "Southbound" demonstrates a lot of potential, but every segment feels incomplete and raises multiple questions rather than providing thrills and entertainment. In the first segment: what the heck are these skeletal creatures supposed to be and why are these two blokes trapped in a sort of time warp? During the second chapter: what ever happened to the fourth girl the others keep referring to? Who are their assailants and what drives them? One girl escapes, but what's the fate of the other two? The third segment is the most satisfying, but still: why is the hospital abandoned and who are the voices on the phone? Segment four is the most frustrating of them all and I can't even begin to describe what the purpose of this tale is. The final story is a prelude to the first but doesn't clarify anything. We still don't know about the background of these people and we're still guessing what the skeletal creatures are. For some incomprehensible reason, "Southbound" has quite a large fan-base and surely the geeks love to endlessly debate about alternate dimension theories, hidden clues, suggestive backgrounds, etc... This isn't cinema in the league of David Lynch; - it's only a mediocre and overly pretentious horror anthology. I would normally give a rating 4 or even 5, because the special effects are admirably gruesome and there certainly are a handful of atmospherically tense moments, but the lack of screenplay is so infuriating that I stick to the minimum rating. Consider it a statement.

If you want something other than a generic, mass-produced, slasher/creature feature horror movie that actually has a deeper meaning and makes you think, then look no further, and go watch this movie. Weird. I feel like I just said this moments ago. Never mind.Before we start, what I don't understand is why people are complaining about the stories being insufficiently explained. Those people obviously don't realize what makes a good horror movie. Let me remind you of what Stephen King once wrote - "Nightmares exist outside of logic, and there's little fun to be had in explanations; they're antithetical to the poetry of fear." In a good horror story, there shouldn't be an explanation. The unanswered mystery is what stays with us the longest. Besides, if you pay enough attention while watching the movie, you'll get every explanation you need (spoilers ahead): *SPOILER ALERT!!!* The movie is actually set in Hell, represented by a highway in the middle of nowhere, and it tells the stories of the people who are suffering an eternity in a loop there by showing why they landed there in the first place. It's a haunting collection of tales of constant agony of reliving the sins and personal horrors of every character. Every bit of cleverly placed foreshadowing detail about the characters and their sins reveals so much about who they are as people, and this tied in with their actions and behavior serve to tell a complete, full story about each and every one of them. And that's what makes this movie a storytelling masterpiece. It makes you use your head, think, ponder, realize, and ultimately reflect on every single second of it.*SPOILERS END HERE!!!* To sum it all up, if you want something other than a generic, mass-produced, slasher/creature feature horror movie that actually has a deeper meaning and makes you think, then look no further, and go watch this movie. Weird. I feel like I just said this moments ago. Never mind.

SPOILER: Two guys in a truck are escaping from something. They end up at a gas station/diner/motel. When they try to leave they end up at the same place over and over. Finally they stop and one guys is butchered by the thing that has been following them. The other guy goes back to the motel where he starts hearing and seeing his daughter and encounters the thing.In a different room at the motel three girls from a band leave and end up with a flat tire somewhere and without a spare. A friendly old-fashioned couple gives them a lift. During dinner another couple comes over with their twin sons. Two of the girls eat some nasty looking meat dish, the third girl is a vegetarian. Later the two end up vomiting some black stuff and late at night simply walk outside in the dark. The other girl follows them and sees them joining some ceremony. All the others are in robes and chanting. At some point they discover her and chase her as she runs to the street.And is hit by a car. The driver calls 911 but doesn't know where he is or where he is going. He decides to drive to a city nearby, goes into a hospital, which is completely empty. The dispatcher, EMT, and now a doctor are on the phone and guiding him. He's told to intubate the girl by hand, and then manually to compress her lung. He does so and eventually he allowed to leave.Nearby a woman is on the phone, I think she may have been one of the people talking to the guy. She goes into a bar where later a guy with a shotgun breaks in and asks if anyone has seen his missing daughter. After several scuffles, the guy at the bar takes him to a tattoo parlor where the daughter works. Against her will, the brother takes her with him and they drive away, but where to? The brother faces a nasty while the girl drives back and goes into a restroom.From it a girl exits and joins her family eating. They go to a vacation house where soon enough 3 masked guys appear. The break into the house and grab the couple. The daughter hid and is safe. By accident they end up killing the couple, and attack the daughter, but now things turn very surprising. Among the surprises, two of the masked guys are the guys from the beginning in the truck.Southbound presents these interesting and creepy stories. Each story poses more questions than it answers. And in this case it worked. Others here on the boards have come up with excellent explanations. Perhaps one problem with Southbound is that it didn't intrigue me enough to try and come up with answers. I was perfectly content with not knowing how it all comes together, or whether it does, but apparently it does. So a lot of thought went into these scripts but not enough clues were offered to the audience or it wasn't made clear that they were clues. In any case, I enjoyed Southbound. It's a different, original, interesting movie that sets quite an atmosphere. I found the creature thing to be very neat and different, as well. The cast was mostly unknown to me but Nathalie Love and Hassie Harrison are just lovely.

These small films fit into one another just like the Twilight Zone movies. If you're looking for a common theme, you're likely to be disappointed, There are these giant devilish skeleton bats that chase some of the characters, apparently for justice. Other than that, it's just a fairly well made, and simply made, horror movie with a few clever twists.There is one part where a man is distracted by his phone while driving and he hits a girl who had just escaped a satanic sacrifice ceremony. He calls 911 only to become more confused by what has happened and of course frustrated. Some of the stories are like that, unsatisfying.Th giant bat effects ARE satisfying, along with the final scene where we are brought up to speed about what's happening in the chase in the opening scene. The movie works like a circle, setting you on a path and then replacing you there after you've finished another story.This film has a lot of killing and blood in it. There isn't much explanation for any of it though. I suppose you could draw the conclusion that if you live an immoral life, you'll have to reckon with the grim reaper or the devil or some being at the end of your life. Not a very original idea for a horror movie but there are enough clever twists to keep you guessing. It lost two stars with me for the lack of explanation about many elements in the stories.I suppose it could be seen as the devil is coming for those who have killed or sinned terribly but they never say why. If you don't mind open ended movies, you'll probably not get my criticism. I like finding out why the mysterious things happen. It pleases me when everything fit, Southbound is a good movie but seems to leave so many thinking projects up to the viewer. For plain text horror with minimal production, I recommend it!