After being admitted to a hospital in California for a terminal illness, a truck driver named "Elegant John Howard" (Henry Fonda) has his big rig repossessed by the finance company. But rather than stay there and die he decides to retake his truck and drive it one last time on a trip across the country. On the way he picks up a hitchhiker near Cheyenne named "Beebo Crozier" (Robert Englund) who wants to go to Florida. Unfortunately, neither he nor Beebo have enough money to pay for the food and fuel necessary to get there. As luck would have it, however, while driving near Laramie, upon stopping to visit an old friend named "Penelope Pearson" (Eileen Brennan)-who happens to be the madam of a brothel--he discovers that she and six prostitutes desperately need to get to South Carolina. Needless to say, with their ability to make money, combined with his need to fund one last cross-country trek, both Elegant John and Penelope reach a business agreement of sorts to accomplish their respective goals. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was an entertaining and light-hearted drama which kept me interested from start to finish. Admittedly, it is a bit dated but I thought it definitely managed to capture that particular period of time quite well. In any case, although this isn't the best "trucker film" ever made, I thought it was well worth the time spent and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.
Review of The Great Smokey Roadblock
