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Movies like Scenic Route

Key Features:
Friendship tested, Survival, Desert setting, Psychological thriller, Isolation, Man vs. man, Relationship breakdown, Violence-moderate, Character study, Existential crisis
Tone:
serious, gritty, dramatic
Target Audience:
Psychological thriller fans, Character-driven drama enthusiasts, Independent film viewers, Viewers interested in survival stories
Emotional Arc:
Camaraderie → Tension → Hostility

Scenic Route

2013-08-23
Scenic Route Poster - Find Similar Movies

Stranded on an isolated desert road, two life-long friends fight for survival as their already strained relationship spirals into knife-wielding madness.

Genres
Drama, Thriller
Cast
Josh Duhamel, Dan Fogler, Miracle Laurie, Christie Burson, Peter Michael Goetz, Jamie Donovan, Ethan Maher
Crew
Kevin Goetz, Michael Goetz, Kyle Killen
Rating
6.28(207 votes)
Scenic RouteScenic Route
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Wrecker
Wrecker(2015)
4.122

Best friends Emily and Lesley go on a road trip to the desert. When Emily decides to get off the highway and take a "short cut," they become the target of a relentless and psychotic trucker who forces them to play a deadly game of cat and mouse.



Nature of the Beast
5.891

Two men, both hiding a deadly secret, are on a murderous rampage through the desert.



4L
4L(2019)
5.914

To find Joseba, a dying friend, and see him reunite with his daughter Ely, two old friends, Jean Pierre and Tocho, embark with her on a road trip through the Sahara desert, from Spain to Mali.



Mountain Men
5.5

Two estranged brothers, Toph and Cooper, must journey to a remote family cabin in the mountains to evict a squatter. Buried resentment and bruised egos soon derail the plan and when the smoke clears they've destroyed their car and burned down the cabin, leaving them stranded in the cold Rocky Mountain winter. With their very survival at stake, they must learn to work together as brothers to get back to civilization.



Trespassers
4.87

Two dysfunctional couples rent a modern luxury desert home for the weekend hoping to sort out their messed-up lives. Just as they are about to settle in for a fun night, a neighbor turns up at their front door saying she has car trouble. But soon they discover the person they let into their home may have nefarious intents.



Twentynine Palms
5.086

A photographer and an unemployed woman embark on a chaotic trip to the California desert for a photo shoot, filled with passionate encounters and frequent fights. Their seemingly empty relationship takes a dark turn when a brutal incident abruptly ends their journey.



Carriers
Carriers(2009)
6.1

A deadly virus has spread across the globe. Contagion is everywhere, no one is safe, and no one can be trusted. Four friends race through the back roads of the American West on their way to a secluded utopian beach in the Gulf of Mexico where they could peacefully wait out the pandemic. Their plans take a grim turn when their car breaks down on an isolated road starting a chain of events that will seal their fates.



The Mountain Between Us

Stranded on a mountain after a tragic plane crash, two strangers must work together to endure the extreme elements of the remote, snow-covered terrain. When they realize help is not coming, they embark on a perilous journey across hundreds of miles of wilderness, pushing each other to survive and discovering their inner strength.



Japanese Story
6.309

Sandy, a geologist, finds herself stuck on a field trip to the Pilbara desert with a Japanese man she finds inscrutable, annoying and decidedly arrogant. Hiromitsu's view of her is not much better. Things go from bad to worse when they become stranded in one of the most remote regions on Earth.



The Canyon
5.575

A survival story about a honeymooning couple who get lost in the wide expanse of the Grand Canyon.



Bottom of the World

On their road trip through the southwestern desert, Alex and his girlfriend Scarlett arrive in a town in the middle of nowhere and take a room in a mysterious hotel so that Scarlett, who is feeling increasingly ill, can get some rest.



Breakdown
Breakdown(1997)
6.907

On their cross-country drive, a married couple, Jeff and Amy Taylor, experience car trouble after their SUV breaks down. Stranded in the New Mexico desert, the two catch a break when a passing truck driver offers Amy a ride to a nearby café to call for help. Meanwhile, Jeff is able to fix the car and make his way to the café, but Amy isn't there. He tracks down the trucker ― who tells the police he's never seen Jeff or his wife before. Jeff then begins a desperate, frenzied search for Amy.



Duel
Duel(1971)
7.417

Traveling businessman David Mann angers the driver of a rusty tanker while crossing the California desert. A simple trip turns deadly, as Mann struggles to stay on the road while the tanker plays cat and mouse with his life.



Significant Other
6.027

Ruth and Harry decide to take a romantic backpacking trip through the Pacific Northwest, but amongst the beautiful scenery, Ruth makes an unexpected discovery that sets her off on a strange, frightening new path. The couple aren't alone in the woods, and they might not be the same when they come out...if they come out.



A Far Off Place
6.1

Thrown together under incredible circumstances, two strangers must discover courage and strength when they begin a journey across the treacherous African desert! Equipped only with their wits and the expertise of a native bushman who befriends them, they are determined to triumph over impossible odds and reach their destination. But along the way, the trio face a primitive desert wilderness.



The Strange Ones
5.216

Mysterious events surround the travels of two brothers as they make their way across a remote American landscape. On the surface all seems normal, but what appears to be a simple vacation soon gives way to a dark and complex web of secrets. This is the feature film version of the 2011 short film going by the same name.



Monolith
Monolith(2016)
5.334

A mother and her son plan a surprise visit to Los Angeles to see her husband/his father. Halfway there they get into a terrible accident in the middle of nowhere and now must fight to survive.



The Long Dumb Road
5.593

Two guys serendipitously meet at a time when they both find themselves at personal crossroads and decide to embark on an unplanned road trip across the American Southwest.



Wilderness Therapy
4.93

Deep in the Pyrenees, two close friends at rock bottom have the idea of the century: to pull themselves of their misery, they will launch a horse trekking tour, a voyage through the mountains for tourists in search of nature, silence and adventure.



Seeking a Friend for the End of the World

As an asteroid nears Earth, a man finds himself alone after his wife leaves in a panic. He decides to take a road trip to reunite with his high school sweetheart. Accompanying him is a neighbor who inadvertently puts a wrench in his plan.



Mojave
Mojave(2016)
4.99

A suicidal artist goes into the desert, where he finds his doppelgänger, a homicidal drifter.



Wind Chill
5.8

Two college students share a ride home for the holidays. When they break down on a deserted stretch of road, they're preyed upon by the ghosts of people who have died there.



Quarries
Quarries(2016)
4.95

To escape her abusive boyfriend, Kat joins a wilderness expedition with a group of women, all of whom are struggling with the uncertainty of life. What was supposed to be an opportunity for personal discovery quickly becomes a fight for survival, forcing each one to discover the strength within themselves that they didn't even know they possessed. While being brazenly chased by a pack of predators, the strong quickly set themselves apart from the weak. In a battle of will, stamina, and heart, these very virtues present themselves at the most crucial moment. With death looming, each is left with what is truly important - the strength within oneself.



The Road
The Road(2009)
7

A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind and water. It is cold enough to crack stones and, when the snow falls, it is gray. Their destination is the warmer south, although they don't know what, if anything, awaits them there.



Harpoon
Harpoon(2019)
6.018

Rivalries, dark secrets, and sexual tension emerge when three best friends find themselves stranded on a yacht in the middle of the ocean under suspicious circumstances.



Prey
Prey(2024)
6.022

A young couple is compelled to leave their Christian missionary station in the Kalahari Desert after being threatened with death by an extremist militant gang. After crashing their aircraft they must battle man and beast for their lives.



Transit
Transit(2012)
5.732

Nate takes his family for a camping trip to reconnect. When they pull off at a rest stop, a gang of thieves hides their stash from an armored car robbery among the family belongings. They soon find themselves on the run and the gang will stop at nothing to get their money back.



Outback
Outback(2020)
6

A young American couple’s Australian holiday takes a terrifying turn when they get lost in the outback. With only one another to rely on, the two are driven to extremes in order to stay alive in the harsh and unforgiving wilderness.



Alone
Alone(2020)
6.4

A recently widowed traveler is kidnapped by a cold blooded killer, only to escape into the wilderness where she is forced to battle against the elements as her pursuer closes in on her.



The Loneliest Planet
5.625

Backpacking in the Caucasus Mountains, walking for hours, an engaged couple and their tour guide trade anecdotes and play games to pass the time, until a momentary misstep, that takes only two or three seconds, changes everything.



Thelma & Louise
7.594

Taking a break from their dreary lives, close friends Thelma and Louise embark on a short weekend trip that ends in unforeseen incriminating circumstances. As fugitives, both women rediscover the strength of their bond and their newfound resilience.



Highway
Highway(2002)
5.5

Jack is caught with the wife of his employer, a Vegas thug. The thug sends goons after Jack, who convinces his best friend, Pilot, to flee with him. Pilot insists that they head for Seattle, but doesn't tell Jack why. The goons learn from Pilot's drug source where the youths are headed, and they follow, hell bent on breaking Jack's feet. On the road, Jack and Pilot give a ride to Cassie, a distressed young woman. She and Jack hit it off. They pick up an aging stoner headed to Seattle for Kurt Cobain's memorial, and they help a circus sideshow family. Why is Pilot so set on Seattle, will the goons catch Jack, and is there any way the friends' competing needs can be resolved?



Paris, Texas
8.093

A man wanders out of the desert not knowing who he is. His brother finds him, and helps to pull his memory back of the life he led before he walked out on his family and disappeared four years earlier.



Entertainment
5.594

Set in the Mojave Desert, the film follows a broken-down comedian playing clubs across the Southwest, working his way to Los Angeles to meet his estranged daughter.



Dust Devil
6.2

A woman on the run from her abusive husband encounters a mysterious hitch-hiker.



Southbound
5.9

The film contains five stories set on desolate stretches of a desert highway. Two men on the run from their past, a band on its way to a gig, a man struggling to get home, a brother in search of his long-lost sister and a family on vacation are forced to confront their worst fears and darkest secrets in these interwoven tales.



Flight of the Phoenix

When an oil rig in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia proves unproductive, an aircraft crew are sent to shut the operation down and fly them out. On the flight out over the desert on the way to Beijing, Capt. Frank Towns and co-pilot A.J. are unable to keep their cargo plane, a C-119 Flying Boxcar, in the air when a violent sandstorm strikes. Crash-landing in a remote uncharted part of the desert, the two pilots and their passengers -- a crew of oil workers and a drifter -- must work together to survive by rebuilding the aircraft. Soon, low supplies and a band of merciless smugglers add even greater urgency to their task.



Lowlifes
Lowlifes(2024)
6.362

The survival instincts of a road-tripping family are put to the test when they have no other choice but to stay the night at a remote homestead.



Held Up
Held Up(1999)
5.526

What should have been a romantic getaway turns into one hilarious debacle after another when Michael's woman dumps him in the desert where he gets carjacked by a teenager and he is taken hostage in a stickup at the local Sip and Zip.



Mine
Mine(2016)
6.589

After a failed assassination attempt, a soldier finds himself stranded in the desert. Exposed to the elements, he must survive the dangers of the desert and battle the psychological and physical toll of the treacherous conditions.



Hitch Hike
6.844

A bickering couple driving cross-country pick up a murderous hitchhiker who threatens to kill them unless they take him to a sanctuary. In return he agrees to split some bank loot he has on him.



Gold
Gold(2022)
6.2

In the not-too-distant future, two drifters traveling through the desert stumble across the biggest gold nugget ever found and the dream of immense wealth and greed takes hold. They hatch a plan to excavate their bounty, with one man leaving to secure the necessary tools while the other remains with the gold. The man who remains must endure harsh desert elements, ravenous wild dogs, and mysterious intruders, while battling the sinking suspicion that he has been abandoned to his fate.



On the Road
5.617

Sal Paradise is a young writer whose life is shaken and ultimately redefined by the arrival of Dean Moriarty, a free-spirited, fearless, fast talking Westerner and his girl, Marylou. Traveling cross-country, Sal and Dean venture out on a personal quest for freedom from the conformity and conservatism engulfing them in search of the unknown, themselves, and the pursuit of “it” -- the pure essence of experience.



It Stains the Sands Red

In the throes of a zombie apocalypse, a troubled woman from Las Vegas with a dark past, finds herself stranded in the desert with a lone and ravenous zombie on her tail.



Route Irish
6

A private security contractor in Iraq rejects the official explanation of his friend's death and decides to investigate.



Sky
Sky(2015)
6.2

A woman embarks on a journey alone across the United States after fleeing from her violent husband.



Fall
Fall(2022)
7.1

For best friends Becky and Hunter, life is all about conquering fears and pushing limits. But after they climb 2,000 feet to the top of a remote, abandoned radio tower, they find themselves stranded with no way down. Now Becky and Hunter’s expert climbing skills will be put to the ultimate test as they desperately fight to survive the elements, a lack of supplies, and vertigo-inducing heights



August 32nd on Earth
6.504

After escaping unscathed from a car accident, photo model Simone decides that having a baby is the only way to give her vacant life some meaning. She asks her best friend Philippe to get her pregnant, and he reluctantly agrees, on the condition that they conceive somewhere in a desert, so they leave Montréal on a 24-hour round-trip to Salt Lake City to find a suitable spot.



The Climb
The Climb(2020)
6.1

Kyle and Mike are best friends who share a close bond — until Mike sleeps with Kyle’s fiancée. A stormy but enduring relationship ensues between Kyle, with limitless patience, and Mike, who only lives his life by sowing discord in that of others, across many years of laughter, heartbreak, and rage.



Dead Sea
Dead Sea(2024)
6.285

Stranded in the open sea after a fatal accident, a young woman and her two friends are rescued by a fishing vessel's captain, unaware that the ship harbors a chilling secret.



Paradise
Paradise(1982)
6

After their caravan is attacked and their respective families butchered by Arab marauders, teenagers David and Sarah flee across the desert. But the desert is filled with danger from the elements, animals and the unwholesome appetite of the Jackal, a sheik who wants Sarah for himself. However, the desert also holds temptation and love. David and Sarah hide out in an oasis and build a life for themselves, discovering each other in new ways.



Lost in the Sun
5.914

A small time crook and a newly-orphaned teenage boy team up to perform a string of robberies.



Going the Distance
5.4

Nick is a successful young man whose comfortable West Coast life couldn't be better. However, when his girlfriend falls under the influence of lecherous music producer Lenny Swackhammer, Nick impulsively decides to travel to Toronto to intervene. Nick's buddies Tyler and Dime opt to turn the quest into a cross-country road trip that's complete with wacky antics and encounters with beautiful women.



Shuttle
Shuttle(2008)
5.3

When two friends return from a girls weekend vacation in Mexico, they find themselves stranded at the airport. Trying to get home safely, they board an airport shuttle for the short trip. But once their feet cross the threshold of the shuttle, a night that had started like any other turns terrifying, and the ride home becomes a descent into darkness.



Summit Fever
5.575

A daring dream to scale the world's most challenging trio of mountains soon turns into a terrifying nightmare for a group of friends when a deadly storm traps the climbers near the summit and cuts off all hope of rescue. With the odds stacked against them, the friends are forced to trust each other to save themselves by any means necessary.



Paddleton
Paddleton(2019)
6.986

An unlikely friendship between two neighbors becomes an unexpectedly emotional journey when the younger man is diagnosed with terminal cancer.



Mojave Moon
4.8

Al McCord is hanging out at his favourite restaurant when he meets an attractive young woman (Ellie) who is looking for a ride from the city out into the Mojave Desert, where her mother lives. Little does he know that while Ellie is falling in love with him, he is falling for her mother (Julie), despite the nearby presence of Julie's boyfriend who seems likely to go berzerk at any moment. Even more strange, hilarious events follow and it's up to Al to find some explanation. His life may never again be the same.



Wrong Turn
6

Jen and a group of friends set out to hike the Appalachian Trail. Despite warnings to stick to the trail, the hikers stray off course—and cross into land inhabited by The Foundation, a hidden community of mountain dwellers who use deadly means to protect their way of life.



Three
Three(2005)
5.6

After a yachting accident, a millionaire and his wife are shipwrecked on a desert island along with their former deckhand, Manuel.



Back Roads
5.804

A young man cares for his younger sisters after their mother is imprisoned for murdering their abusive father. When he strikes up an affair with a married woman, long-dormant family secrets bubble to the surface.



The Sunchaser
6.2

A young half-Navajo convict dying of cancer forces a yuppie doctor to drive him to a magic healing lake.



Destination Wedding
5.785

Frank and Lindsay—two emotionally-broken strangers—meet on the way to a destination wedding. Over the course of the weekend and against all odds, they find themselves drawn together even though they are initially repulsed by one another.



Grand Canyon
6.4

Grand Canyon revolved around six residents from different backgrounds whose lives intertwine in modern-day Los Angeles. At the center of the film is the unlikely friendship of two men from different races and classes brought together when one finds himself in jeopardy in the other's rough neighborhood.



The Layover
5.37

When their plane is rerouted due to a hurricane warning, two single female best friends find themselves competing for the same guy during an extended layover in St. Louis.



Simple Men
6.698

Two diametrically opposite brothers set off on a journey to reunite with their estranged father but when their motorcycle breaks down while passing through a small town, they become entangled in local life.



Microbe and Gasoline

Two young friends embark on a road trip across France in a vehicle they built themselves.



Incident On and Off a Mountain Road

While driving at night on a mountain road, Ellen gets distracted and hits an abandoned car. When she tries to get help, she is attacked by a backwoods killer and must fight to stay alive.



Monster Man
5.979

Two guys and a female hitchhiker are terrorized by a monstrous looking man driving a giant monster truck.



Old Joy
Old Joy(2006)
6.3

Soon to be a father, Mark feels the pressure of domestic responsibility closing in, so he is more than happy to accept when his old friend Kurt proposes a camping trip in the Oregon wilderness. During their time together, the men come to grips with the changes in their lives and the effect on their relationship.



The Road Within
6.9

A young man with Tourette's Syndrome embarks on a road trip with his recently-deceased mother's ashes.



Dark Country
5.385

Two honeymooners rescue a mysterious car crash survivor in the Las Vegas desert. But their decision to save the man becomes increasingly regrettable when he turns on them, forcing the newlyweds to do the unthinkable.



Intimate Stories
7.3

Three people and a baby set off on separate journeys, along the same road; their disparate dreams and stories intertwine amidst the breathtaking deserted Patagonic route.



Turistas
Turistas(2006)
5.476

A group of young backpackers' vacation turns sour when a bus accident leaves them marooned in a remote Brazilian rural area that holds an ominous secret.



Sayen: Desert Road
6.3

Sayen follows a lead to the picturesque desolation of the Atacama Desert. There, she reluctantly teams up with a young Atacameño girl, Quimal, looking to clear her father’s name and save her town from becoming an arid wasteland due to Acteon’s exploitative water usage.



Ass Backwards
4.42

Two best friends embark on a cross country trip back to their hometown to attempt to win a pageant that eluded them as children.



Heatstroke
5.089

On a family trip in the African desert, a research scientist unintentionally travels off course and is brutally murdered by an arms dealer. His girlfriend is put to the ultimate survival test as she attempts to evade the killers and protect his teenage daughter.



Downrange
Downrange(2018)
5.7

Stranded at the side of the road after a tire blowout, a group of friends become targets for an enigmatic sniper.



Hell
Hell(2011)
5.75

In 2016 the sun has turned the entire world into a scorched and barren wasteland. The humans who have survived are either resourceful or violent, and sometimes both. Marie, her little sister Leonie, and best friend Phillip, are in a car headed to the mountains - rumor has it there is water there. Along the way they meet Tom, a first-rate mechanic. But can they trust him? Fraught with deep distrust, the group is lured into an ambush where their real battle for survival begins.



Meek's Cutoff
6.491

A group of settlers traveling through the Oregon High Desert in 1845 find themselves stranded in harsh conditions.



The Hitcher
5.9

While driving through the New Mexico Desert during a rainy night, college students Jim Halsey and his girlfriend Grace Andrews give a ride to a hitchhiker. While in their car, the stranger proves to be a psychopath threatening the young couple with a knife, but Jim successfully throws him out of the car. This sets off a chain of events that will change all of their lives forever.



Jeremiah Johnson
7.3

A mountain man who wishes to live the life of a hermit becomes the unwilling object of a long vendetta by Indians when he proves to be the match of their warriors in one-to-one combat on the early frontier.



Long Distance
6.516

After crash-landing on an alien planet, an asteroid miner must contend with the challenges of his new surroundings, while making his way across the harsh terrain to the only other survivor – a woman who is trapped in her escape pod.



The Trip
The Trip(2011)
6.644

When Steve Coogan is asked by The Observer to tour the country's finest restaurants, he envisions it as the perfect getaway with his beautiful girlfriend. But, when she backs out on him, he has no one to accompany him but his best friend and source of eternal aggravation, Rob Brydon.



Numb
Numb(2015)
5.506

Husband and wife, Will and Dawn, are in financial crisis after learning the job Will was counting on to salvage their financial future has disappeared in the midst of a market collapse. They set out to drive home on the winter highway back to their city, and in a moment of altruism, pick up siblings Lee and Cheryl, a pair of hitchhikers on their way to start a new life. In the midst of the night they nearly collide with an old man wandering on the snowy highway, hyperthermic and horrifically frostbitten. While searching for his ID they discover a wad of cash, a hand drawn map with GPS coordinates, and a single gold coin inside his coat. Will and Dawn reluctantly go along with Lee’s plan to report him to the police as a John Doe and pocket the money. In an attempt to save their financial struggles, all four venture off into the snowy wilderness in search of the buried gold.



Farm House
5.164

Stranded in the remote countryside after wrecking their car, a couple seeking to start over discovers that there's no escape from the sins of their past.



Accident
Accident(2017)
5.2

A group of teenagers suffer a terrible accident during a joy ride and get trapped at the bottom of a ravine.



The Royal Hotel
5.36

After running out of money while backpacking in a tiny, male-dominated town in the Australian outback, two friends resort to a working holiday at the Royal Hotel. When the locals' behavior starts crossing the line, the girls find themselves trapped in an unnerving situation that grows rapidly out of their control.



Traffik
Traffik(2018)
6.114

A couple off for a romantic weekend in the mountains are accosted by a biker gang. Alone in the mountains, Brea and John must defend themselves against the gang, who will stop at nothing to protect their secrets.



Safelight
Safelight(2015)
5.8

A teenage boy and girl discover a renewed sense of possibility as they go on a road trip to photograph lighthouses along the California coast.



Scarecrow
Scarecrow(1973)
7.034

Two drifters bum around, visit earthy women and discuss opening a car wash in Pittsburgh.



Ana
Ana(2020)
6.313

Ana meets Rafa in a chance encounter and they embark on a road trip to try and save him from bankruptcy, or worse.



Deliverance
7.31

Intent on seeing the Cahulawassee River before it's turned into one huge lake, outdoor fanatic Lewis Medlock takes his friends on a river-rafting trip they'll never forget into the dangerous American back-country.



Hikers
Hikers(1997)
5.7

A quartet of Parisians embark upon a guided hike in Corsica and end up working through the sometimes comical chaos of their individual lives.



Free Zone
Free Zone(2005)
5.4

Rebecca, an American who has been living in Jerusalem for a few months now, has just broken off her engagement. She gets into a cab driven by Hanna, an Israeli. But Hanna is on her way to Jordan, to the Free Zone, to pick up a large sum of money.



Vacation Friends
7.032

When a straight-laced couple that has fun with a rowdy couple on vacation in Mexico return to the States, they discover that the crazy couple they met in Mexico followed them back home and decide to play tricks on them.



Hawaii
Hawaii(2023)
5.455

Nine friends gather every year in their friend Thomas’ hotel in Hawaii. Following a nuclear attack alert, they believe that their last moments are upon them. Years of hidden truths, resentment and bitterness starts to resurface and their friendly annual meeting soon turns into an aggressive score-setting shouting match.



Prey
Prey(2021)
4.704

A hiking trip into the wild turns into a desperate bid for survival for five friends on the run from a mysterious shooter.



American Flyers
6.1

When Dr. Marcus Sommers realizes that he and his troubled, estranged brother David may be prone a fatal brain disease that runs in their family, he decides to make peace with his sibling, and invites him on a trip to the Rockies. There, the brothers bond over their shared enthusiasm for cycling and decide to enter a grueling bike race through the mountains. However, Marcus' health soon begins to fail, and David must compete without his brother at his side.



Hit the Road
6.7

A chaotic family is on a road trip across a rugged landscape. In the back seat, Dad has a broken leg, Mom tries to laugh when she's not holding back tears, and the youngest keeps exploding into car karaoke. Only the older brother is quiet.

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