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‘My mother told me never to do this.’

From the moment Jim Halsey (C. Thomas Howell) picks up the stranger (Rutger Hauer), his life irrevocably changes for the worst. The man, John Ryder is a serial killer who mutilates his randomly chosen victims, found travelling along the deserted road from California to San Diego.

Luckily Halsey manages to knock the man out of the car, but then what follows is a horrific duel of wits between the two men, in which Halsey attempts to stop Ryder from committing more murders.

One shocking scene involves Halsey’s girlfriend (Jennifer Jason Leigh) being tied between a truck and its trailer whilst Ryder revs the engine.

Despite these touches of horror, the Hitcher is a strangely appealing film that over the years has developed something of a cult following. Although plodding along at times, the film has that rare quality that keeps you glued to the screen, as the 2 players try to outwit each other. Even when it appears that the Hitcher’s reign of terror has been brought to an end, locked up in a police station and surrounded by perhaps 20 officers, he still has a few more surprises up his sleeve.

The characterisation of the Hitcher is interesting, at first appearing to be a nameless non-person. Indeed when he is captured by the police, they can find no record that he even exists, without even a social security number or driving licence, which begs the question, who is he?

Hauer plays the role of Ryder perfectly, adding the right mix of suspense and menace that keeps you guessing to the very end and in this reviewer’s opinion is his finest screen role to date.

Such is the film’s cult status that a sequel was made in 2003, but unfortunately without Rutger Hauer. And in 2007 the original film was remade with Sean Bean in the lead role, but this was sadly no where close to the thrill ride of the original.

Available on the ground floor of the University Library in the DVD collection at 791.4372 hit.

Q. Rutger Hauer was a famous face in the 1980s advertising which brand of beer?

Written by Martin Osborne (Academic Subject Librarian)