The Hitcher
The Hitcher
R | 19 January 2007 (USA)
The Hitcher Trailers

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.

Reviews
Inclubabu Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.
Solidrariol Am I Missing Something?
Breakinger A Brilliant Conflict
Dirtylogy It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.
Rainey Dawn I would have rated this one higher if the ending was different. I didn't like them trying to make a super-heroine out of the girl - that was lame, other than that it's a decent watch. 7/10
SnoopyStyle Jim Halsey (Zachary Knighton) is driving college girlfriend Grace Andrews (Sophia Bush) to meet her friends. On a rainy night while driving in desolate New Mexico, they almost run over John Ryder (Sean Bean). The couple leaves him behind and there is no phone signal. Ryder catches up to the couple at a gas station and guilts Jim into hitching a ride. Ryder turns out to be a psycho and Jim manages to kick him out. Ryder catches another ride with a young family but Jim crashes the car before they could be warned. As Jim and Grace walk along the road, they run into the family again but they are all stabbed. They try to drive them to the hospital but the family all die. They are arrested by the cops. Ryder comes and kills everybody at the station. Jim and Grace run away. State police Lt. Esteridge (Neal McDonough) comes in to take over the case.The main difference from the original is the girlfriend along for the ride. Sophia Bush is a good addition. Zachary Knighton is not compelling enough. He's just another grungy pretty boy. They need to write a few good jokes for him and give the guy a personality. Sean Bean is a good actor and he has the gruff demeanor. However, he doesn't have the superhuman presence of Rutger Hauer's Ryder. Bean is playing a straight forward psychopath. This movie has fixed a couple of problems from the original but it doesn't have that hyper shock that the original represented. Critics loved to hate the original. The final act makes a switch. It's a good idea because Bush is a better actor and probably a better crier.
SeriousJest According to IMDb, Red was credited as a screenplay writer for this movie, but had no part in writing it (aside from writing the 1986 film). I haven't seen the 1986 version, but if it was any good, I don't blame him for wanting to distance himself from this version.This flick starts strong and features competent performances by good actors (except for Bush's second-half performance, which gets out of her range, in my opinion; she just hasn't mastered the thousand-yard stare). However, it's a lot of build-up for nothing. The effects and action are often hokey, it feels as if some major events were skipped (and not in a good, it's-better-to-leave-it-to-the-imagination way), and the payoff to the big question throughout the movie is never realized. If I had to describe this film in one word, it would be "senseless." Also according to IMDb, "Rutger Hauer, who played the character of John Ryder in the original was offered a cameo, but declined for artistic reasons. Hauer has since said in the press that he has yet to watch the remake, and according to some of his friends he shouldn't bother." Smart man.For more reviews and a kickass podcast, check out: www.livemancave.com
videorama-759-859391 Basically this is a unnecessary rehash of an 86' classic who's plot chooses to stay with the original, only with a couple of neat changes, peppered with uglier gore. The original in it's time was considered overly violent. Gees, how times have changed. Although it's well acted, but not by Zach whoever starring as Jim Halsey, who blatantly brought a amateur performance to the role (he wasn't strong enough) it just goes down that same road. One thing that wholly impressed was the chase sequence. It was wonderfully executed. It's a shame as the surrounding screen time of the movie was all old territory. There are some shocks I loved, one in Halsey's dreams when retiring for a night in a rest stop. If a fan of the original, there's one thing you won't see coming. A nice change/twist. Like the original, this is wonderfully and impressively shot, especially the night shots near the start, where Bean, getting sopping wet, is standing in the middle of the road thumbing it. Of course it doesn't match tour de force photography done by Australia's John Seale in the original, where the location shots were hen pecked. The racey pumped up tune at the start, is something I'd loved to have on a c.d. when driving over to the Yorke. Bean is solid, defines evil on a strong scale, only with Hauer, it was very naturalistic, where as Bean, who is a good actor, shows a lot of try, if as trying to match Rutger's performance, a role he'll never live down. Hottie, Bush as Halsey's girlfriend, Grace is very good and believable, where Mcdonnough as Captain Esteridge shows strong support, although Jeffrey De Munn was better in the role in the original. If a fan of the 86 classic, watch it, but if have never seeing both films, see the original first, PLEASE, before videoing this one.