sol- Driving across Texas, a young man is stalked by a serial killer who briefly hitched a ride with him in this thriller written by Eric Red of 'Near Dark' fame. Rutger Hauer is perfectly cast as the unsettling, unpredictable hitcher and the opening scenes are loaded with atmosphere as lead actor C. Thomas Howell keeps falling asleep at the wheel before picking up Hauer. As the menacing Hauer subsequently plays cat and mouse with Howell, framing him for murders along the way, 'The Hitcher' is initially frustrating to view since his motives for pursuing Howell are vague. As the film progresses though and Hauer keeps telling Howell that he is smart enough to figure it out, the film begins to feel much more allegorical, with Howell suffering the consequences of doing what he (as he says) his mother told him never to do: give a lift to a stranger. Interesting as this may be, 'The Hitcher' is hardly flawless and significant stretch in which Howell is aided and assisted by a young woman who believes him lacks the tension and Kafkaesque paranoia of the rest of the film - though of course what happens to her is most unexpected. Whatever the case, the movie is filmed in a classy manner. There are some great 360 degree shots in the police station, there is a superb shot in which the camera creeps up to Hauer at low camera angle in the middle of the road, and Mark Isham's score is perfectly moody.

ofpsmith Rating this film was difficult. On one hand it was exciting and intense. On the other hand it has some pretty glaring plot holes. Whilst transporting a car from Chicago to San Diego, Jim Halsey (C Thomas Howell) picks up a hitchhiker named John Ryder (Rutger Hauer) in Texas. Ryder is strange and evasive to most of Jim's attempts to make conversation until Ryder states his intention to murder him. Jim kicks Ryder out of the car and speeds away, thinking he has lost him. That is until Ryder finds him again and frames Jim for the murders. Jim is arrested and eventually escapes into the Texas landscape. Along the way Jim meets a young waitress named Nash (Jennifer Jason Leigh) as the two of them are now essentially on the run from the law. Ryder finds the two of them at seemingly every turn as a game of cat and mouse ensues. A good premise which almost makes a good movie. Key word: Almost. As I already mentioned the biggest problems with the movie are the plot holes. First of all Jim makes some pretty dumb decisions. There's a scene where after he's booked in a holding cell, Ryder (supposedly and off camera) kills all the cops in the station. Somehow Jim sleeps through the shootout and when he finds the carnage he steals a gun and escapes. The problem I have with this scene is just that it would make more sense for Jim to go back to his holding cell so the cops would see that he's not the murderer. And from there he just makes himself look more and more guilty. When two policemen track him down he holds them up at gunpoint. Jim does this a few more times throughout the movie. The other big glaring plot hole is the way that Ryder somehow knows exactly where Jim is going to be. I get that he's tracking him down constantly and that it's supposed to be suspenseful, but it's just kind of distracting. If Ryder is always tracking Jim down then why doesn't he just kill him then and there. He kills a countless number of other people throughout the film so why is he always leaving Jim alive just so he can find him again. I guess it's a way to keep the cops off his back but it still doesn't really hold up. The bottom line is that if you can look past these things than you'll probably like the movie just fine as it is competently made and suspenseful.

Red-Barracuda This film tells a story about the dangerous bond between a mysterious serial killer and a young driver called Jim who makes the mistake of picking him up when driving cross country through a desolate part of Texas. Immediately after their chance encounter, a series of violent murders occurs, with Jim getting the blame after being continually set up by the killer. The result is a major manhunt and further escalating violence.The Hitcher is a film which you think will be a horror movie but which is really an odd combination between a psychological thriller and action film. Despite the premise, it holds back on the horror potential if anything. This isn't, in itself, a bad thing although the 80's action that makes up the latter part of the story does sometimes seem an odd bedfellow to the more psychological approach of the earlier scenes. I felt that the movie did lose steam as it went on to be perfectly honest, the further it removed itself from the dark realism of the original premise the less interesting it became. The killer is really almost a supernatural being, with a persona that always feels he is otherworldly in some way. Rutger Hauer brings some charisma to the role but it is ultimately a fairly cardboard psychotic character he is playing. C. Thomas Howell is slightly whiny in the lead role, while Jennifer Jason Leigh is possibly a bit underused as the waitress who assists him. Despite my reservations, this is still an entertaining enough thriller with some good individual scenes and ideas.

OllieSuave-007 This is an 80s thriller where young Jim Halsey (C. Thomas Howell) who wishes he never gave hitchhiker John Ryder (Rutger Hauer) a ride. He turns out to be a murderous psychopath who stalks and frames Halsey for his crimes after Jim initially kicks him out of his car.The entire film is set in the desert, which gives the notion that there is nowhere for poor Halsey to hide. Therefore, he must dodge Ryder at every time and think of a plan to beat him at his own cat and mouse game. All this mayhem set off an intriguing plot and suspenseful thrills that will keep you at the edge of your seat.The acting is decent enough and the drama is sort of powerful; you could sense Halsey's frustration and anxiety this psychopath has caused him, providing sympathy from the audience. Included in the story is some intense horror and action sequences that all leads to a tense climax ***minor spoiler*** (not a completely satisfying climax, but still serviceable). ***minor spoiler ends*** Not bad overall.Grade B