Scott Bush

In 1986 a film was released called The Hitcher. In 1986 I was watching Transformers (the animated movie) for the twentieth time, not some slasher film. Fast forward 21 years; a remake of the film is released to little fanfare and some pretty bad reviews:

Ultimately, this is a bit of trash that will most comfortably line the cages of those who have no memory or attachment to the original. This in itself is an idea more terrifying than anything portrayed in The Hitcher. ~Dallas Morning News.

So when I visited my friend for an evening of popcorn and a good scary flick, I wasn’t too pumped when she suggested The Hitcher. “It’s more gore-scary, not supernatural-scar,” she said, certainly not endearing me any more to the idea; I’m no gore/torture fan (which is why I’ll never watch the Saw, Hostel, or Texas Chainsaw Massacre series). But then she told me it was the original, which was a “cult classic.” I thought I’d give it a chance. I’m glad I did!

The plot is simple: a young man (C. Thomas Howell, of E.T. and Red Dawn fame) picks up a hitch hiker who tries to kill him. He escapes, but tries to protect others from the hitcher and ends up getting involved in a string of killings for which he is blamed. The hitcher, played excellently by Rutger Hauer, pursues him across dusty highways from one lonely gas station or diner to another in what appears to be the Nevada desert.

What surprised me most was its sheer watchability. Despite the terrible choices the main character Jim Rawley makes later in the film, early on he seems very realistic. Case in point: when he first escapes from the hitcher. His disbelief followed by extreme exuberance just seem real. And later, when two cops are shot right in front of him, his screams and reactions seem like something I’d do (assuming I was stupid enough to have gotten myself in that position). Of course, no such film can actually continue to be realistic and his Rawley continues to make idiotic moves that fly in the face of logic, such as when he steals a cop’s gun (for the second time, no less) or manages to sleep through a roomful of cops being shot or stabbed to death. Another thing preventing me from suspending my disbelief: the hitcher’s appearance in places he couldn’t possibility get without being noticed. But whatever; it’s a great flick. Oh, and not gory really at all—other than some intense gunshots.

Oh, two more items. It’s full of ’80s stuff like rotary phones, white guys with afros, and everyone smoking. And I noticed a voice I recognized near the end. I closed my eyes and sure enough: it sounded like Armin Shimmerman. The credits (and IMDB) proved me right. For you non-nerds out there, Armin Shimmerman played Quark on Star Trek Deep Space Nine. Awesome.