The Hitch-Hiker (1953)

Director:

Ida Lupino

Writers:

Robert L. Joseph (adaptation)
Ida Lupino (screenplay)

Release Date:

29 April 1953 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Film-Noir

Tagline:

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

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Car Radio | Road Map | Road Movie | Target Practice | Cantina

Awards:

1 win

Cast

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

Runtime:

71 min

Country:

USA

Language:

Spanish | English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Norway:16 | Finland:(Banned) (1953) | USA:Approved (PCA #15999) | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA

Company:

Filmakers, The

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.

Quotes:

Emmett Myers: You guys are soft. You know what makes you that way? You're up to your neck in IOU's. You're suckers! You're scared to get out on your own. You've always had it good, so you're soft. Well, not me! Nobody ever gave me anything, so I don't owe nobody!

Movie Connections:

Featured in Wanderlust (2006) (TV)

A Buried Little Treasure!

"The Hitch-Hiker" is an excellent little independently produced film-noire thriller directed by Ida Lupino. It is essentially a three character story about two pals on a fishing trip (or is it?) who stop to pick up a hitch-hiker whose car has apparently broken down, What they don't realize is that the hitchhiker is a crazed killer.

The two buddies are played by two of the best character actors of the period, Edmond O'Brien and Frank Lovejoy. The hitcher, in the role of his career, is played by William Tallman (of TV's Perry Mason fame).

The story covers their trek across the desert back roads of Mexico in an effort to evade the law. Most of the film takes place within the claustrophobic confines of O'Brien's car as he and Lovejoy remain at the mercy of loose cannon Tallman never knowing where or when he might decide to shoot them. Lupino gives us a compact, tense and suspenseful thriller. Shot in black and white, it runs a brief 71 minutes and delivers an excellent drama on a limited budget.

Rarely seen today, this movie is a buried little treasure.