I’m a sucker for road trip movies – probably because I’m an avid traveller myself. I’m an even bigger sucker for horror movies – probably because I watched Jaws when I was too young. Combine the two genres and I’m seated every single time, especially if it’s summer movie season and the theater has the air conditioning cranked to Antarctica.
Passenger follows a young couple who just started their life together as nomads living out of a van. One night a couple months into their journey, they happen across a man driving crazy and he nearly runs them off the road before crashing into a tree. They stop to help the man, but unwittingly become the target of the evil spirit/demon that latches onto people who stop on deserted roads during the night. They have to find a way to stop him, or they too will die.
This film is a slow burn of a movie that deserves a better third act. The ending isn’t terrible, but it does feel a little anticlimactic after all the buildup the movie made the viewer sit through. The film does put the Patron Saint of Travelers, Saint Christopher, to good use until that third act where they let the whole “happy accidents” thing play out instead of going all in on there being no coincidences or accidents.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m glad this film isn’t about finding faith, but it does end in a remote abandoned church dedicated to Saint Christopher so perhaps a little religion could have elevated this ending to something more meaningful. These two main characters put a pendant of the Saint in their van and then don’t think about it again until the pendant comes in handy getting the spirit chasing them to flee their vehicle. Their new understanding that there can’t be good without evil, something that many religions base their lore on, never gets truly realized. And it’s a bummer because the I do love a slow burn that nails the ending. This film almost gets there. Almost.
That said, there is some great imagery along the way that makes this film worth seeing. If you’re paying attention and not scrolling on your phone, the demon often lurks in the background, buried in shadows. It adds a lot of tension to scenes where the protagonist knows something is amiss and the viewer gets to see the demon before the actor does. That is this film’s strength.
I would have liked to see more of Melissa Leo who plays one of the nomads this couple comes into contact with. There’s obviously a lot of urban legends among the nomad population, and Leo’s character seems to be the only one to share them. The others just seem hostile towards the newcomers who couldn’t have possibly known that stopping at night to help a marked person would cause them to be marked too.
3.5 out of 5 stars for this film that has some good jump scares and tense scenes, but misses out on a great ending.
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Becky Tyler Art and Photography 
I’m a sucker for road trip movies – probably because I’m an avid traveller myself. I’m an even bigger sucker for horror movies – probably because I watched Jaws when I was too young. Combine the two genres and I’m seated every single time, especially if it’s summer movie season and the theater has the air conditioning cranked to Antarctica.
Passenger follows a young couple who just started their life together as nomads living out of a van. One night a couple months into their journey, they happen across a man driving crazy and he nearly runs them off the road before crashing into a tree. They stop to help the man, but unwittingly become the target of the evil spirit/demon that latches onto people who stop on deserted roads during the night. They have to find a way to stop him, or they too will die.
This film is a slow burn of a movie that deserves a better third act. The ending isn’t terrible, but it does feel a little anticlimactic after all the buildup the movie made the viewer sit through. The film does put the Patron Saint of Travelers, Saint Christopher, to good use until that third act where they let the whole “happy accidents” thing play out instead of going all in on there being no coincidences or accidents.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m glad this film isn’t about finding faith, but it does end in a remote abandoned church dedicated to Saint Christopher so perhaps a little religion could have elevated this ending to something more meaningful. These two main characters put a pendant of the Saint in their van and then don’t think about it again until the pendant comes in handy getting the spirit chasing them to flee their vehicle. Their new understanding that there can’t be good without evil, something that many religions base their lore on, never gets truly realized. And it’s a bummer because the I do love a slow burn that nails the ending. This film almost gets there. Almost.
That said, there is some great imagery along the way that makes this film worth seeing. If you’re paying attention and not scrolling on your phone, the demon often lurks in the background, buried in shadows. It adds a lot of tension to scenes where the protagonist knows something is amiss and the viewer gets to see the demon before the actor does. That is this film’s strength.
I would have liked to see more of Melissa Leo who plays one of the nomads this couple comes into contact with. There’s obviously a lot of urban legends among the nomad population, and Leo’s character seems to be the only one to share them. The others just seem hostile towards the newcomers who couldn’t have possibly known that stopping at night to help a marked person would cause them to be marked too.
3.5 out of 5 stars for this film that has some good jump scares and tense scenes, but misses out on a great ending.
Discover more from Becky Tyler Art and Photography
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
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