Off in the remote desert outskirts somewhere, an abandoned truck tire springs to life and manifests a degree of psychokinetic force. Humming and vibrating as it rolls, the wheel bursts beer bottles, then small animals, then human heads, while a gallery of curious spectators use binoculars to eavesdrop from a safe distance. They’ve been gathered to watch “the film,” a decidedly ambiguous special attraction, and this absurd turn of events has left the whole gang buzzing.

It doesn’t take a genius to spot the metaphor. Certainly not after the opening scene, when an actor directly addresses the camera (conveniently positioned amongst the gawkers) and evangelizes about the need for “no reason” in cinema. His point seems to be this: many well-regarded movie plots feature events that happen by chance, so here’s a bunch of random stuff with no explanation. Why can this tire make things explode into bloody hunks? No reason. Why did someone poison the audience? No reason. If that explanation was good enough for Spielberg and Polanski, it should also be good enough for _Rubber_. Right?

Well, sometimes it is. The express permission to just let go and enjoy the ride is a welcome change, especially for a premise that’s so bafflingly, intentionally stupid. Gratuitous bloodshed offers cheap rewards, and in that respect, _Rubber_ certainly pays out. Its frequent, self-aware commentary sometimes feels too cute or unwieldy, demanding at least as much time as the rolling rubber monster, but that’s all in good fun and I took it as such. Everything seems to be nearing a spectacular climax, particularly when the participants of “the film” think the show’s over and have some fun with the impermanence of their own roles, but that dash of irreverence is short-lived and we’re almost immediately scolded for enjoying it. I can’t tell if this film's hate is reserved for the tropes that power its sub-genre or the audience at large. Maybe a little of both? Hey, maybe it hates loud-mouthed film critics like me, for trying to drag something intelligent out of a big, dumb exploitation movie!

Whatever the agenda (if there even is an agenda), it meets mixed success. The wheelie bits are shallow, but silly fun. The meta stuff is sometimes thumped too hard, and the overwhelming sense of nihilism can be exhausting, but without those it wouldn’t be much of a picture. I enjoyed more than I didn’t, and I appreciated the impetus to try something so decidedly different. I just wish it weren’t so on-the-nose.