Zzyzx® (Z?–Zux), the suspense-thriller feature film internet hit inspired by the famed, mysterious exit sign seen and questioned by tens of thousands of drivers daily as they travel to and from Las Vegas on Interstate Highway 15, makes its DVD debut. Zzyzx, www.zzmovie.com, was the first motion-picture-length film to premiere on movie download devices such as computer laptop, ipod and playstation portable.
Zzyzx, dubbed as “…creepy, demented and voyeuristic” by The Blair Witch Project’s co-creator Daniel Myrick and an “…awesome indie flick” by Ain’t it Cool News, is a modern-day thriller about three misfits lost on Zzyzx Road who attempt to “one-up” each other in a grisly game of murder, drugs and greed. The movie stars Kenny Johnson, Lemonhead on FX TV’s The Shield, who is also featured this season in a starring role on CBS’ Cold Case, and Robyn Cohen from The Life Aquatic. Zzyzx was produced and directed by Richard Halpern, who recently executive-produced the Myrick directed webisodic opus, The Strand, www.strandvenice.com starring James Morrison from Fox TV’s 24.
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It’s a very similar process to how we shoot The Shield. Raw, natural energy, with a cast and crew moving 100MPH
“Wes Craven’s original The Hills Have Eyes, the recent Saw movies, Deathtrap, Grudge 2, The Exorcist, were all inspirations for Zzyzx. I love movies driven by character, and, oh yes, blood,” smiles Halpern. “Digital film and internet distribution is the way the world will eventually watch most movies. We wanted Zzyzx to be the first mainstream feature-film to debut on, and show clips to, video ipods, cell-phones, Myspace, YouTube, building a strong internet and viral community, ultimately depending on word of mouth to successfully launch the DVD to a mass mainstream audience.”
“It was too easy to fall under that road’s mysterious spell,” admits Zzyzx screenwriter Art D’Alessandro, who recently penned The Final Season, an upcoming Sean Astin and Rachael Leigh Cook starrer. “There were some curious occurrences during filming that caught us all by surprise, like cryptic, message-filled radio broadcasts picked up on our DAT recorder, twenty flat tires in seven days, and mysterious, symbolic shadows appearing on actors while they performed. It made the whole experience a little creepy. Google the word Zzyzx and you’ll see there is a huge cult following for this sign, this road.”
To add to its voyeuristic aesthetic, Zzyzx was shot cinema-veritae style. “It’s a very similar process to how we shoot The Shield. Raw, natural energy, with a cast and crew moving 100MPH,” says Johnson.
Features on the Zzyzx DVD include interviews with the stars and crew, homages to A Clockwork Orange and The Exorcist, a director/writer commentary track, deleted scenes, an imternet web-link that takes viewers to exclusive content and hidden “Easter egg” surprises. Additionally, the website, www.zzmovie.com, offers visitors a glimpse into the mysterious and murderous history of Zzyzx, providing further mythology for the film.
The 80-minute feature film is distributed by Yarble.com, LLC of Nevada, and is presented on large format dual-layer DVD and works on all DVD regions world-wide. Zzyzx can be purchased for $14.99 at www.zzmovie.com and other retailers.
