“Passenger” follows a young couple who are followed by a demonic presence after witnessing a gruesome highway accident.
If you’ve seen the trailer for “Passenger,” not many surprises will await in the opening minutes. Yet somehow, the introduction is still tense. This is because, inherently, nighttime drives are a little bit “spooky.” Federico Verardi immediately injects style through the cinematography, capturing scenery through dirty car windows, following the opening and closing of car doors and swirling around tight spaces for a claustrophobic effect. On top of this are the headlights and taillights that eerily illuminate the darkness.
Once the title card appears, however, it grows clear that “Passenger” may not have its priorities in check. Despite the easy setup for frights, the film is more concentrated on jump scares. Time and time again, director André Øvredal generates true anxiety. However, after the setup, the scares themselves fail to deliver. This is because scenes typically conclude with a pop-up face or sharp noise rather than something genuinely unsettling.
In spite of the diminishing returns in the horror department, Zachary Donohue and T.W. Burgess’s script spends a considerable amount of time developing the story. This includes focusing on the characters. While it’s typically cliché, the film gives the audience reasons to root for Tyler and Maddie (or, at least not against them). On top of this are the subtle drops of lore. Rather than unveiling the complete nature of the scares immediately, it hints at new developments throughout the course of the 94-minute runtime.
As the threat looms larger, this gradual buildup heightens the tension — even when the eventual horrors are weak.
There are also a number of gnarly effects on display. Whether it’s scraping flesh or pure carnage, “Passenger” has it. Blood is used sparingly, but when showcased, it’s largely effective.
The performances from Jacob Scipio (Tyler) and Lou Llobell (Maddie) likely won’t be remembered by the end of the year. However, they’re still completely serviceable here. Scipio plays more of a charming, composed individual. Llobell is constantly screaming and anxious. Both play into their characters well, making them feel like real people.
Much like other Blumhouse movies, the marketing does “Passenger” no favors. If you come in expecting a true “road trip” horror movie, you’re going to be largely disappointed. This is because most of the horrors and thrills actually come when the key isn’t even in the ignition. This approach helps to subvert expectations in moments, but it also causes the movie to fall into a rinse-and-repeat cycle. Something strange happens, characters discuss it and then they drive to a new location. At a certain point, there are no surprises left to divulge.
The ultimate reveals cause the film to fall in line with a plethora of other demonic-subgenre entries. It’s not necessarily bad. It’s just not memorable, either.
“He’s the highway man from hell. An abomination. I don’t know what it is, but it’s unholy. Something demonic. He’ll have his fun by causing wrecks on the highway, hungering for pain, death, suffering.”
Once the mythology comes fully to light, “Passenger” becomes an exposition-fest. While it was never nuanced, the film quickly grows generic. This hinders the pacing in the process, as the story screeches to a halt before racing off again.
“Passenger” promises plenty with a riveting opening but delivers little in the aftermath. With stereotypical scares and typical lore, the film fails to live up to its premise.
Rating: 2 out of 5
