User reviews

Actor Mark Hamill as a sickly disturbed psychotic killer on the road. No way! The boyishly sweet looking Hamill is obviously trying to break away from that typecast his been associated with and this cheap b-grade Cannon action flick gave him an opportunity to do that. Well he lets it all out in an unconvincingly hammy and spaced-out portrayal with such non-apologetic aplomb. It's quite a sight…. A frightening one too, but not in that threatening way. But there's something random about it that just compels. Starring opposite of him is a surprisingly sound and rugged Michael Dudikoff and coming between the two is a feisty Savina Gersak. Making a brief and all-too tired turn is Robert Mitchum. Who looks like he'd rather be somewhere else and its understandable. I can't deny that I didn't enjoy it, as for an active nocturnal road chase movie with cat and mouse elements it was thrillingly executed. Never did it lose any of that gritty energy and hysterical nastiness from Bob Bralver's assertive direction. Sure it can be laughable, and contrived with its weak psychological front. But it's all about leaving a constant pile of destruction and a workable death toll. Still there's a real creepiness in certain sequences and atmospheric lighting, but it's mostly broken up by some ridiculously over-the-top set-pieces. That also goes for the out-of-nowhere shock ending. The material has actually dreamt up something that's original and could've been tightly menacing (as it has a wife fleeing her committed police husband, while unknowingly offering a ride to a unstable psycho), but how they go about it loses the possibility of gelling the two threats and dissolves into something quite standard with the opening half of the story's motive coming off dispensable. Fair b-grade action romp.

Not bad action film, with Dudikoff in relentless pursuit of his runaway wife. Seems she has had no trouble giving psychopath Hamill a ride to his Psychiatrist, Mitchum. This movie has plenty of truck size plot holes. Cops are portrayed merely as targets for Hammil's knife or gun. Realism flies out the window early, never to return. Nevertheless, things seem to move along at a frantic pace. If you can forgive the sparse character development, just go along for the ride with your brain in neutral. What Robert Mitchum is doing in this film is a huge question? His part could easily been played by any no name actor. Worth watching for Hammil's over the top performance, but just barely. MERK.

Despite receiving top billing, I wouldn't call this a Dudikoff movie. It's Mark Hamill's movie all the way, as the former Luke Skywalker chews the scenery and steals the entire film. In a role that again demonstrates Hamill's versatile talent, he plays a mental patient who has escaped from his hospital to visit his doctor, Robert Mitchum in a small supporting role towards the end of the film. After an argument, Dudikoff's wife leaves him and goes to see her sister, picking up hitchhiking Hamill along the way. Dudikoff borrows his friend's car and sets out to find her, unaware of the danger she will soon be in. As much as I like to see Hamill play good guys, he always makes a delightful bad guy, and his role here is one of his best psychotic characters. Even when he's playing nice there's an underlining sense of uncertainly. The wife finds out Hamill is a psycho when he kills a hotel clerk and fashions a necklace out of her fake eye, dangling it from his finger and asking if she likes it. Dudikoff soon catches up, but learning he's a cop, Hamill forces the wife to hightail it, setting off a dangerous game of pursuit. Dudikoff thinks his wife is trying to get away with another man, and the entire time, always ends up one step behind. At one point he loses his car, forcing him to steal another from a car carrier truck as it speeds down the highway. (A great scene, by the way).

There's plenty of action: car chases, explosions, car chases, explosions, and one tense scene in which Hamill straps Dudikoff to the hood of a taxi cab and proceeds to slam repeatedly into the rear of a gas tanker (the driver of which must be completely unable to feel the hits his vehicle is taking). The climax at a hospital is pretty good as well, with a tense final encounter between Dudikoff and Hamill on the roof of the building. The gritty cinematography helps give the film a horror movie-like tone. I just wish we had known a bit more about Dudikoff and his wife. All we know is that he and a friend helped get her out of Russia, though how we are never told. But that little unknown plot point aside, MIDNIGHT RIDE is effective as a creepy little road movie, and fans of those should enjoy it. It would make a terrific Saturday triple-bill with DUEL and THE NATURE OF THE BEAST.

"Midnight Ride" is a film about a psychopath who is picked up while hitchhiking. This alone is very hard to believe. Why would a woman who is running away from her bully husband stop to pick up a strange man? And, when she has the chance to escape once she realizes he's dangerous, why wouldn't she run? And, when she does run, why doesn't she get the police? Yes, I know the husband is also a cop...but at least stop at a fire station, town hall, shopping mall, or McDonald's to get help???? And, why would the husband who is out looking for her bother to stop and then pick up the guy? Sure, he's a cop and the guy in the middle of the road looks like he's in trouble, but the cop is off duty and looking for his runaway wife! And, when two cars collide, why would they explode like the cars are filled with 20 tons of TNT (in real life, cars very rarely explode)? The bottom line is that there is enough plot here to make a 30 minute TV episode...but stretching it out to feature film length just exposes the many, many, many plot problems.

Now I am NOT saying the film is 100% bad. Mark Hamill plays a ridiculous villain....but he plays him well and with glee...almost like when he's voicing the Joker in Batman cartoons! Hamill fans might really enjoy seeing this...and I thought his acting was fun. But the movie, otherwise, makes little sense. My only reason to see it was to see Robert Mitchum in a supporting role but sadly it sure takes a while to see him in the movie. Overall, a really dumb film that manages to entertain even if the writing simply makes little sense.

The basic plot, A young Russian woman named Laura (Savina Gersak) leaves her husband who also happens to be a cop, later on she picks up a young hitchhiker Justin McKay (Mark Hamil) who surprise surprise turns out to be a psychopath and takes her hostage while he goes on a killing spree so he can meet up with his Doctor, while her cop husband is in hot pursuit.

Midnight Ride is a bit of a strange movie, as it tries to blend Action and slasher together and it works most of the time, as I found this movie a hell of a fun ride, although it does having plot holes and lacks suspense, but all that can be forgiven. Mark Hamil plays a part a million light years away from Luke Skywalker here playing a psychopath, which I rather enjoyed, although it was a bit hammy and unconvincing at times. Michael Dudikoff plays the cop husband pretty well, I found him very charming and capable as the leading man. But I didn't find Savina Gersak very convincing at all, she's supposed to be the terrified victim, but I found her very weak and disappointing and I think that this movie would have been better if they had a better actress in that part.

The film has some really great action moments. In particular, there's a terrific Mardi Gras Massacre sequence that's one for the books. Some of the action toward the end is hit and miss (Dudikoff's encounters with the Pentangle in the swamp is kinda anti-climatic) but the finale is thoroughly awesome. It also manages to have its share of solid action beats (the bus chase was pretty good). Plus, it moves along at a steady clip, which helps make you forget about the lapses in logic. But overall I found this movie fun and entertaining, the scenes with Mark Hamil are the real highlight even if they were hysterically funny, like when he tries to attack a female victim, But I did enjoy the final scenes between him and Dudikoff in the steam factory and the hospital scene.

So all in all okay Midnight Ride is a copy of the far superior Hitcher, but it's not a bad one and this should get a DVD release, because I enjoyed it.

Michael Dudikoff stars as a police officer who spends the entire woman stalking his estranged wife (Savina Gersak), who is in the clutches of psychotic hitchhiker Mark Hamill, seems Hamill wants to go to the loony bin and wants Gersak to be his wife (This movie is so silly.) and during the movie Dudikoff is tied to a hood of a car, while Hamill drives, Gersak screams and Hamill twitches in front of the camera while Robert Mitchum cashes an easy paycheck as he barely looks at the camera as he plays Hamill's doctor. Midnight Ride has all the elements there to be a decent movie but in the hands of Bob Bravler this is all ridiculous with no stab in credibility what so ever. For instance Dudikoff is crippled in the beginning of the film (My guess is that he broke his leg doing one of the stunts for the movie) and yet despite this he still manages to outdo his American Ninja styled heroic actions with plenty of gusto to spare. Ever sprain an ankle? Well you can barely walk, now try imagine trying to beat someone up at the same time? Oh and consider that breaking your leg is much much worse than that. More implausibilities play out. The climax in particular is so ridiculous that it becomes obvious that there is no attempt at credibility to any of the action sequences. What is even more amusing is just how misogynist this flick is. The woman in this film is put through an ordeal because she had the audacity to leave her husband, Hamill's mother was a psychopath (Hamill's sister had an affair with him), another female victim talks back to her boyfriend and the first female victim is shrewish, hence these women are either killed or put through an ordeal. The film also never notes the sharp irony that Dudikoff really is not a good guy, in that he's just as insane as the villain of the movie. Dudikoff refuses to let his wife go as he takes off after her. He offers stock apologies that seem manipulative, he steals cars and furthermore seems to rescue his wife out of jealousy rather than actual love. Of course reading too much into a flick is somewhat pretentious even for me, but there is no doubt that that this thing is somewhat sexist. This of course didn't bother me so much, as the credibility of the action sequences and story. Plus the acting is not very good. Dudikoff comes off the best which says something considering who he is. Mitchum seems embarrassed, Hamill is hammy and Gersak is a rather weak heroine. However the most annoying thing about this movie is just how many times Hamill keeps picking up Gersak. It happens at least 3 times and each time the explanation is absurd. Movies like Midnight Ride live and die by their director's execution and in Bob Bravler we have a guy who has no real sense of distinguishable style so the action sequences are only okay, making it easier to point out flaws in the credibility of how such action sequences are conducted. Therefore the audience sees through the plot and realizes that this far fetched thriller is hardly thrilling.

*1/2 out of 4-(Poor)

Mark Hammill definitely turns in one of his best performances in his career, playing a psychopath as he often does but he's live-action this time around and not animated. Don't mind that, he's still quite animated and often acts just as cartoony as "The Joker" or any number of his more famous animated characters.

Anyway, there's good chases and excitement, but at its heart this film really is just another low budget Italian B-movie with a 20 second cameo by a bored looking Robert Mitchum. Savina Gersack is in it, which usually isn't a good sign, but she's a good actress and looks good too. Dudikoff, on the other hand, is extremely boring as the hero and the whole way through I was rooting for the bad guy.

Lots of stupid stuff, a few explosions and surprisingly graphic gore scenes, but this has ended up being a forgotten film, much like THE MOSQUITO COAST or BREAKER MORANT.

Mark Hamill is the only aspect of Midnight Ride (1990) worth watching. This is no exaggeration, guys.

Every other aspect of this film is terrible. The editing is atrocious. The action scenes go on too long. The plot indulges in one bad cliché after another. The "horror" is laughable. Dudikoff is uncharismatic and boring as "the hero" (who only manages to be slightly less obsessive and creepy than the villain of the piece). Gersak is a wooden damsel that you actually WANT to get killed, so terrible is her acting. Even the great Robert Mitchum is awful, probably lamenting his presence in this mess.

But Mark Hamill? Oh, Mark Hamill-- the scene-chewing, that devilish grin, the way he seems to be channeling Anthony Perkins from Psycho (1960) with the juxtaposition of his boyish looks, sexual repression, and homicidal tendencies. He is the only reason to watch this movie. It shows how versatile an actor Hamill is. He's certainly not the next Olivier, but it makes me sad that he's only known for Luke Skywalker and the Joker. He deserves more.

Midnight Ride has a few "so bad, it's funny" moments, but overall, this is pretty bad and only works when it's The Mark Hamill Show.

This movie is GREAT! For anyone who doesn't like it, doesn't get it. And, oh yeah, get a sense of humor (a black one would be best). No matter how many times she escapes, Mark Hamill just keeps showing up. Driving the bus was my favorite. His insane driving is ridiculous, but it's hysterical that his hands are always at 10 & 2! The exploding cars had us rolling. Also, how many cars is her husband, the cop, going to steal? My favorite was off the moving car hauler. Appreciate it for what it is, & you'll have a good time.

This film has one warning, and one warning only: Do not under any circumstances ever pick up any hitchhikers!! "Midnight Ride"

is a cool action/suspence movie since "Frantic", even though it's practically a forgotten film. Michael Dudikoff is Lawson, a cop who is trying to rescue his estranged wife Lara (Savina Gersak) from a psycho named Justin, played brilliantly by Mark Hamill. Lawson tracks down Justin, who beats up the cop constantly, until the final showdown in a hospital. Hamill is awesome in this film, which is really a change of pace for the former Luke Skywalker. The only problem with this movie is Dudikoff, who has a cardboard-stiff performance that makes you root for the bad guy!

Entertaining enough to keep me interested, although the film seems to lose momentum towards the end, as it doesn't become very clear what the antagonist's intentions are. Some good action sequences.

This movie starts with a good sense. Savina Gersak left her husband for some period. But her husband followed her. She gave ride to stranger. In the first look itself, the stranger looks creepy, but for her (Who is mad on her husband) he is like her brother. She is expression-less in most of the movie. At some point she was crying and there was no tear in her eyes. She did whatever Justin (The Stranger) asked him to do, never resisted. She became the hostage.

Another thing, the cops are also not treated nicely in the movie. The villain took care of all cops except hero (husband of Savina Gersak).

In the movie a continuous race is going on. People are left behind and they change vehicles but still catches another person. How come? After living here in US, I got to know that it's very difficult to chase another person if he is 1 hour ahead on the highway, but according to movie, it looks like that it ain't difficult. The villain changed vehicle from Laura's car to Bus, then ambulance, but Hero recognizes every vehicle. Again how, nobody knows.

Plot was OK, but never got executed well.

I watched this movie the first time about 25 years ago on the telly late at night, and then again recently, and again late at night on the telly. Mark Hamill is eerily effective, cast against type as a psychopathic killer, he's so intense - it's obvious he relished the chance to play such a character, even if it was just in a lower-berth Cannon Group thriller. He's easily the best thing in this grungy little outing, clearly shot on a shoestring and very quickly. Still, the atmosphere is eerie, and it's a tightly told story. No real artistic pretensions (after all, it's a Michael Dudikoff vehicle!), just an in-your-face thriller.

This movie is characterized by gratuitous (and very excessive) violence. It's also graced by a dumb plot, and bad acting. Skip it. It's a waste of time.

Okay, you can't deny that The Hitcher inspired this movie, and you think, sarcastically "Oh, I can just imagine". Well, I'd hate to say it, but you're wrong. I've seen this film, many a time. This quite tense movie has great plotting, and believe it, Hamill pulls off his hitch hiking psycho convincingly. I was impressed by the structure of the story, situation after situation. Sevina Gershak, really good, as are our four leads, plays a Russian immigrant married to cop Dudikoff. Obviously she's had enough. This seemingly arranged marriage isn't working, and I must admit, I did find Dudikoff irritating. Hopefully that hairy scene with him, tied down the front bonet of a car as it hurtles down a mountainside, woke him up a bit, and made he reevaluate his priorities, but I don't think it did too. Also to begin with, he's on crutches, so he's limping throughout. The guy doesn't learn. This film with it's violent moments, leads up to a little twist towards it's conclusion, never letting up on the tenseness of the film, where we're greeted with acting presence, Mitchum, who was Hamill's psychiatrist. I wish we had more screen time with Mitchum. Being a Hitcher fan, I had to see this out of curiosity, and while it's not as good as that cult classic, here's a tense B grader you shouldn't overlook, save for a stupid after ending scene with Hamill. The performances are good, though sometimes Hamill does ham it up, but it's fun seeing him in this role, and he does like taking photos too.

Midnight Ride is a very good but unusual movie that stars Mark Hamill, Michael Dudikoff, and the great Robert Mitchum! Dudikoff was good and I thought he looked a lot like Carey Elwes in the movie and Mitchum was good in his short part but Hamill was the one in the film that really shinned! I was so surprised but the unpredictableness of his character and how he played this maniac! Mark is a very good actor and I have always liked his acting in the original Star Wars trilogy especially The Empire Strikes Back! The music by Carlo Maria Cordio is good and in My opinion most of it nearly sounded like Alan Silverstri's Predator and Back to the Future scores! The movie is filmed very different and has action and many thrilling moments and you never know what is going to happen! If you like Mark Hamill and to see him in another great role then I strongly recommended you watch Midnight Ride!

While I had actually never heard about this 1990 thriller titled "Midnight Ride", as I stumbled upon it by random chance here in 2025, of course I opted to watch it. Why? Well, because I hadn't already seen it, and also because it had Mark Hamill on the cast list.

Writers Russell V. Manzatt and Bob Bralver put together a fair enough script and storyline. It was a pretty straightforward script and narrative. Though, I will say that I was adequately entertained throughout the course of the 88 minutes that the movie ran for.

The acting performances in the movie were good, and I was especially thrilled with Mark Hamill's somewhat psychotic performance as the killer Justin Mckay. The movie also had Michael Dudikoff and Robert Mitchum on the cast list, so there were some familiar faces.

This was a watchable movie, for sure, but hardly an outstanding thriller experience. Nor is it a movie that warrants more than a single viewing. And truth be told, it was solely because of Mark Hamill's creepy performance that the movie stayed afloat.

My rating of director Bob Bralver's 1990 movie "Midnight Ride" lands on a five out of ten stars.

Even halfway through this film, I would not have recommended it. Now I would watch it again. It seems like one of those weak plotted, thrown together films with dull and boring driving scenes. And there is plenty of that. But it is not the plot. Nor is it stunning acting. So what is it about this film that works? Strong, pressing acting, without letting up. Each lull in the "action" precipitates more progression towards anticlimax. It gains a hidden rhythm and timing which turns what would seem to me to have been the most boring movie of the month, if not of the year, into something that stands on its own. Incidentally, they must have spent a small fortune on explosive materials. For a film having only four leading actors, Michael Dudikoff, Mark Hamill, Savina Gersak and then finally, Robert Mitchum, who plays this kind of role well, there was more going on than normal observation revealed. It comes out as a strange film and if you appreciate the way these things come together with a good, full cast, then watch it all the way through. After it is over, you'll like it. Then when you think about it, you'll like it a little more. Very odd. In fact, as I consider it now, part of the character of the film borrows from the style of older horror films made in the 50's and early 60's.