Could I have watched this on YouTube? Yes. Did I? No. I had the DVD and felt it was the right choice for this 2006 indie flick. So I popped it into our PlayStation and took a trip down memory lane with this low-budget, teen-made, dark comedy about murder: Downhill.
Jonah Loves Dana so much he’d kill for her, literally. In a crazy tale of love, friendship, and high school mishaps Jonah proves time and time again that love conquers all.
Downnhill, IMDB
We open on main character Jonah (Joe Gariffo) in the middle of a scuffle on school grounds. He’s used to fighting, just about as much as he’s used to his parents arguing and wishing he could hook up with fellow student Dana (Jessica Kienzle). Best friend Teddy (Chris Galanti) tells Jonah just to forget about her, but Jonah, with his 2000s teen mentality, just won’t let it go. He plans to fight his main adversary and ends up killing him accidentally. With a new lease on life and Dana now by his side, Jonah continues to make things worse — and kill more people — all in the name of love.
Downhill took me right back to high school (freshman in ’06, class of ’09). The title sequence and accompanying music feels very timely, like it had been done on an old version of Windows Movie Maker. But little things here and there make it worth a little more than its $1100 budget would suggest. For example, that same title sequence introduced the characters in cartoon style. Downhill gives us actually-choreographed fight scenes, as well as some really well-filmed movement involving box car racing. On top of that, this movie was made by a bunch of 19-year olds. To have a feature-length film be made on such a small budget and have it turn out pretty good is a feat! That said, Downhill does have some faults, mainly that they could have used an extra boom mic or two to catch some of that dialog a little better.
Now, Downhill is a dark comedy with some murdering, so let’s get to it. I won’t sugarcoat that the actual murders are very tame. Jonah’s first kill is accidentally slitting someone’s wrist and them bleeding out. Considering the cause of death, you’d think that the screen would be blanketed in red, but it’s not. Another stabbing/strangling is the same. Really, we don’t have much to show for these murders until the end, and even then, it’s a t-shirt with some bloody handprints on it. Downhill may be light on plasma, but its kills are still there, and they’re absolutely ridiculous. I just kept thinking back to 2006; even then, a high schooler wouldn’t have gotten away with these kills even if they tried. Lying to friends about trips to Tibet and just straight-up admitting guilt — and nothing happens?! Wild.
On that same note, Downhill really shows its age with both gay jokes and Black jokes, mixed in with some blatant backhanded misogyny against Dana in particular. Nothing too bad honestly, even by 2026 standards, but definitely a throwback to another time that maybe someone younger than 30 might not appreciate as much as I did. Sure, Downhill was crass at moments, but (1) it was a product of its time, and (2) it gives a certain je ne sais quoi that solidifies how dumb and dangerous Jonah and his friends actually are. They are high schoolers, yes, but let’s not forget they’re out here fighting, killing people, and lying about it, thinking nothing of it. Murder is serious, and the fact that it’s all jokes here gives Downhill a slightly sinister element to it.
Downhill is peak 2006 from the soundtrack to the dialogue and everything in between. This 20-year old film is a time capsule, not only for life in the mid-2000s, but for indie filmmaking of that era as well. In a time where everyone has 10K resolution on their phones and access to premiere digital editing and semi-professional media talent, it’s easy to think that movies need to be polished and perfect, even in the indie space. But Downhill is the opposite: micro-budget, rough around the edges, and made by a bunch of friends just for funsies. In a way, Downhill is the true essence of filmmaking where hard work and heart end up making a feature film that has enough fandom to warrant DVD copies with extra features (if you every get the chance, grab yourself a copy because it has outtakes and deleted scenes, as well as multiple commentaries!). Downhill is not as its title suggests: it’s a throwback to your youth, where even something as serious as murder is laughed away as “just highschoolers doing their thing.”
Downhill is on YouTube — go check it out! Want more? Head to actor Joe Gariffo on YouTube and Instagram.
