The Letdown: Hitch-Hiker

After reading a synopsis of any film, I generally feel that I have the ability to deduce the quality of that movie. That apparently isn’t true.

The basic premise to The Hitch-Hiker sounds intriguing. And in-fact it’s at least partially true. The script writer borrowed some current headlines and come up with the basic frame of the narration. Unfortunately, it just didn’t work out.

What’s even more surprising is that the person who directed this, Ida Lupino, fared better on a number of other features – both in front of and behind the camera. And perhaps her story is as interesting as the film is – after all, she was the only female director working in Hollywood during the ‘50s.

But back to the film.

A realistic enough exposition suggests that The Hitch-Hiker could shape up into a great and entertaining film. Two men, who work together, are on vacation – to go fishing. They decide to pick up a stranger on a lonely stretch of highway. It obviously is all down hill after that.

The kidnapper who, to the credit of Lupino and the cinematographer, is often splashed in shadows and filmed at night, proceeds to take these two unwitting men on a ride to escape authorities for the murders he has committed

Perhaps, my reticence to embrace this film stems from the fact that more recent films serve to desensitize viewers from violence. Being inundated with a range of images more violent or threatening than anything that occurs during The Hitch-Hiker has tempered my ability to enjoy the film.

But I still love Hitchcock. It’s a curious situation.

There are a variety of pratfalls and escape attempts by our two captives, but they’re always out witted by this murderous car hopper. Each of these characters seem sketched well enough, even if each seems like a caricature.

Surely there are suggestions to be made regarding possible improvements – but the film ends up seeming so slight, that it just doesn’t matter. I could imagine this being re-made amidst the ‘60s experimentation with the medium, but it just didn’t happen and we have to live with the vision that Lupino espoused. It’s not her greatest effort and it’s not getting a recommendation from me.