Passenger – Film Review
by Fran Winston

Directed by:  André Øvredal
Starring:  Jacob Scipio, Lou Llobell, Melissa Leo

In cinemas May 22

When the trailer for this dropped, it was immediately declared the scariest film of the year by those who had viewed it, and the internet was abuzz with analysis of the clip. While I appreciate that trailers don’t give you the full picture as a horror fan, from the initial reactions, I was really looking forward to this. It seemed to utilise jump scares and a lot of practical effects, which I love. Director Øvredal also has a good pedigree for horror films, having previously helmed movies such as 2016’s The Autopsy of Jane Doe and 2023’s The Last Voyage of the Demeter.

The premise appears to be a simple one. A young couple packs up their apartment to embrace van life. If you’re not familiar with this concept, it basically involves living in a van which has been converted into a micro home.

When they are moved on one night from a residential area, they are forced to drive looking for a spot to camp. When they stumble upon an accident, they of course stop and try to help. However, it transpires that two of the key rules of the hobo code are never drive at night and never stop. In doing so, they inadvertently pick up an unwanted passenger – an evil entity who stalks travellers, causing them horrifying deaths. In order to shake him off, they will have to learn the rules of the hobo lifestyle and understand the traveller code.

While the premise is pretty straightforward and allows for plenty of the aforementioned jump scares, what lets this down is the mythology. Without spoilers, as they research the being and we learn its genesis, even the biggest horror fan will realise it doesn’t add up.

This isn’t aided by the fact that this reveal is very rushed – perhaps they were hoping it would be a case of blink and you’ll miss it. By its very definition, horror requires you to park logic at the door of the cinema, but this really is glaring. It is also let down by some rather shoddy special effects in the final scenes.

This is a shame because, prior to this, they do a good job of world-building and character development. The scares are handled well and don’t feel overegged – although there is a car park scene that goes on about 90 seconds too long. It also doesn’t outstay its welcome at a respectable 94 minutes.

On paper, this has all the ingredients of a great horror, but it never fully realises its potential. With a few tweaks, this could have sown the seeds for a franchise, but as it stands, it is an OK popcorn movie that won’t go down as a horror classic.