The Hitch-Hiker (1953)

Two fishermen pick up a psychotic escaped convict who tells them that he intends to murder them when the ride is over.

Director:

Ida Lupino

Writers:

Collier Young (screenplay), Ida Lupino (screenplay)

Stars:

Edmond O'Brien, Frank Lovejoy, William Talman

1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Edmond O'Brien	...	Roy Collins
Frank Lovejoy	...	Gilbert Bowen
William Talman	...	Emmett Myers
José Torvay	...	Captain Alvarado (as Jose Torvay)
Sam Hayes	...	Radio Broadcaster
Wendell Niles	...	Wendell Niles (as Wendel Niles)
Jean Del Val	...	Inspector General
Clark Howat	...	Government Agent
Natividad Vacío	...	Jose (as Natividad Vacio)

Storyline

Two friends on a fishing trip pick up a stranded motorist who turns out to be a psychotic escaped convict. This sociopath has already murdered other good Samaritans in his efforts to evade authorities. He sadistically taunts and threatens the two men and perversely delights in telling them that he has them both marked for death sometime before the end of the trip. His destination is a ferryboat in Baja, California, which he hopes will help him get to the mainland. The hostages hope to stay alive long enough to escape or be rescued by Mexican authorities.

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Plot Keywords:

trip | mexico | serial killer | hostage | national film registry | 

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Taglines:

When was the last time you invited death into your car?

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Genres:

Crime | Film-Noir | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

29 April 1953 (Italy)

Also Known As:

The Difference

Filming Locations:

Big Pine, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

RKO Radio Pictures,The Filmakers

Technical Specs

Runtime:

71 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Based upon an incident that happened in California in the early 1950s. A man named Billy Cook murdered a family of five, including three children, and then killed a traveling salesman. He then kidnapped two hunters and took them across the border into Mexico, intending to kill them, too, but before he could he was captured by Mexican police and subsequently extradited to the US, where he was tried for the murders, convicted, and died in the gas chamber at San Quentin on Dec. 12, 1952.

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Goofs

When the men remove the tire from the car, it is fully inflated as the profile of the tread appears to be convex. The tread of a flat tire would appear straight across or concave.

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Quotes

Roy Collins: You stink, Myers! You smell! Just like your clothes! Sure, you'll make it to Guaymas, but they'll catch up with you and put you out of your misery. You haven't got a chance. You haven't got a thing except that gun! You'd better hang onto it because without it, you're finished!

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Crazy Credits

Opening credits prologue: This is the true story of a man and a gun and a car. The gun belonged to the man. The car might have been yours-or that young couple across the aisle. What you will see in the next seventy minutes could have happened to you. For the facts are actual.

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Connections

Featured in Wanderlust (2006)

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Soundtracks

Violin Concerto No 2 in E Minor, Op 64--Andante
Written by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy

User Reviews

Terrific creepy performance by William Talman

At one time actually thought lost, now this minor classic is on video (who says these aren't the good old days?). William Talman, who is mainly remembered as Perry Mason's dullish adversary/stooge on the TV show for years and years, gives a powerful and creepy performance as an insolent psychopath who holds two men hostage through a long road trip around the desert southwest and Mexico. Loosely based on a true story, there's not much more to it than that-- but it's tense and well-crafted all the way through, and deserves its reputation as Lupino's best movie.