The Tripper (2006)

Director:

David Arquette

Writers (WGA):

David Arquette (written by) &
Joe Harris (written by)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

On 4.20, Hippie Blood Will Trickle Down.

Plot:

A Ronald Reagan-obsessed serial killer targets a bunch of hippies who are heading to a weekend-long concert.

Plot Keywords:

Festival | Lumberjack | Chainsaw | Van | Corpse

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

David Arquette	...	Muff
Richmond Arquette	...	Deputy Cooper
Courteney Cox	...	Cynthia (as Courteney Cox Arquette)
China Crawford	...	Paramedic (as China Raven Crawford)
Paz de la Huerta	...	Jade / Summer
Alan Draven	...	Kid #1
Norwood Fisher	...	Band (as John Norwood Fisher)
Ben Gardiner	...	Wilson
Rocky George	...	Band
Balthazar Getty	...	Jimmy
DeAndre Gipson	...	Band
Redmond Gleeson	...	Dylan / Father
Richard Gross	...	Cop
Lukas Haas	...	Ivan
Josh Hammond	...	Tyler

MPAA:

Rated R for strong horror violence and gore, drug content, language and some sexuality/nudity.

Runtime:

USA:93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:R | Germany:Not Rated (SPIO/JK) (cut) | USA:R (cut) | USA:Unrated | New Zealand:R18 | UK:18 | Ireland:18 | Australia:MA (cable rating) | Singapore:M18

Filming Locations:

Big Basin Redwoods State Park - 21600 Big Basin Way, Boulder Creek, California, USA

Company:

Coquette Productions

Trivia:

The film was originally going to be a part of After Dark Production's "8 Films to Die For," but Arquette wanted the film to be released in theaters and on April 20th (4/20), so they respectfully parted ways.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When the old man gets his head chopped off in the tunnel he clearly screams long after his head has been detached.

Quotes:

Ronald Reagan: A hippie is someone who looks like Tarzan, walks like Jane and smells like cheetah.

Movie Connections:

References A Concert for Hurricane Relief (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Kum Ba Ya

Bad Trip & Ax Reagan

In the 80's, after seeing his father and lumberjack foreman being hit by a protester against the deforesting and arrested by the police, the boy Gus kills the protester with a chainsaw. In the present days, Samantha (Jamie King), who is traumatized after being abused by her former boyfriend Jimmy (Balthazar Getty), travels with her pothead friends in a van to the American Free Love Festival, a rock-and-roll concert in the woods. Near the location, they are assaulted by three local hillbillies, but they succeed to arrive in the festival. Meanwhile, Mayor Hal Burton (Rick Overton) and Deputy Buzz Hall (Thomas Jane) try to give a minimum of organization to the event. However, a deranged psychopath serial-killer wearing a mask of Ronald Reagan uses an ax to kill the pacific stoned hippies.

The slasher "The Tripper" is a great disappointment. David Arquette certainly had the intention of making a cult-movie and was supported by a good cast (probably his friends) including a cameo appearance of his wife and a great cinematography and lightening, but unfortunately the story never works. Jason Mewes is comfortable performing his traditional role of pothead; the sexy Jaime King has a good performance in the role of Samantha but the good actor Thomas Jane is displaced in his silly role. Further, the political anti-war jokes and speeches of the Republicans and Ronald Reagan are boring. In a cheap manipulation, the Brazilian DVD highlights the name of Courtney Cox-Arquette in the movie, misleading her fans. My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): "Perseguição Assassina" ("Assassin Pursue")