The Hitcher (1986) 2 Disc Special Edition (Region 2, PAL) - Reviewed by axlish
Reviewed By: axlish
Release Date: July 14th, 2003
Directed by: Robert Harmon
Released: Momentum Pictures
5 out of 5 Skulls
The first time I watched The Hitcher was around 1986-87 when I was ten or eleven years old. We rented it from the old Ace Hardware store (they had a little section in the corner that rented videos) near my Grandmother’s house. My Grandmother and I used to rent horror titles from there all the time, and this may be a running theme each time I review an 80’s classic. When we got to the end credits, my mom said “What did he say to him at the beginning?” I reply “Nothing, he didn’t tell him anything.” Well she rewound it anyway and re-watched the first thirty minutes only to find out that her son was indeed correct. I learned two things that day. Parents should listen to their children, and not knowing anything about the killer or his motives can be very effective. 
The Hitcher begins with Jim Halsey (played by C. Thomas Howell) traveling across the western desert, delivering a car to California. He makes the mistake of picking up a hitchhiker by the name of John Ryder (played by Rutger Hauer). Ryder is an odd and intimidating guy, but also has a little wit and charm, albeit of the sick variety. Before long, Ryder begins to toy with Halsey, holding a knife to his face and asking him to repeat “I want to die”. Halsey strikes up whatever courage he has left in the tank and shoves Ryder out of the passenger door, and in all probability out of his life for good. 
The next day Halsey notices a family in a station wagon pass by. The children in the car are firing toy guns at Halsey so he decides to participate. Suddenly Ryder can be seen playing with the children, apparently hitching a ride with the family. Halsey tries to warn the family that they are traveling with a lunatic but he is unsuccessful. He catches up with the station wagon further on down the road but all that is left of the family is bloody remains.
Halsey tries to get the help of the police but Ryder is smart, and is able to pen the crimes on Halsey. Now Halsey must run from the police as he is erroneously branded as a cop killer. He ends up at a truck stop and gains the sympathy of Nash (played by Jennifer Jason Leigh), a waitress. Halsey convinces her that he is innocent and she believes him. Now they are both on the run from Ryder who will not stop until Halsey, and Halsey alone, is able to kill him. 
Why has Ryder laid down this gauntlet for Halsey to try and kill him? What are Ryder’s motives and what is his background? None of this is explained so the viewer has to merely accept that this is happening. The vagueness is quite intriguing when coupled with the brilliant performance of Rutger Hauer. C. Thomas Howell turns in a great performance as Halsey, a character that transitions from innocent kid to a wise-beyond-his-years, hardened badass.
More impressive is the first time directorial effort of Robert Harmon. His use of wide cinematic scope captures the vast expanse of the desert. It would be tough to think of another film that could have as many labels attached to it. It is in essence a horror film, a psychological thriller, a road movie, a cult movie, a desert movie, a character study, and a car movie.
Disc one includes the feature film presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen with 5.1 Dolby Digital audio. There is a feature length commentary that features screenwriter Eric Red and director Robert Harmon. There are also scene specific commentaries provided by Robert Harmon, Eric Red, C. Thomas Howell, Rutger Hauer, executive producer Edward S. Feldman, cinematographer John Seale, and soundtrack composer Mark Isham that can be viewed all at once in sequential order.
Now for Disc Two…
We’ll start things off with a making of documentary titled How Do These Films Get Made, which is the title of a backstabbing article that was written about the film after its release. The documentary clocks in just under forty minutes and contains interviews with all of the participants in the commentaries. It covers all bases of production from beginning to end and discusses many different incarnations of the story before it finally hit the screen. 
Eric Red was in his early twenties when he wrote the original screenplay for The Hitcher, and blindly sent it out to a few producers. It was accidentally noticed by the wrong person and was picked up for production. Had the right guy got the package, this film would have likely never been made. There were also other actors that were supposed to play the title character and Rutger wasn’t brought in until the eleventh hour. All in all this is an excellent documentary and provides more than adequate information about this film’s production. 
Also included on the second disc are two short films. The first film is a test film that was written and directed by Robert Harmon titled China Lake. He made this film on his own dime in order to create a portfolio for himself in order to get work as a director. He had a successful career in photography but wanted to make the leap to cinematic filmmaking.
China Lake is the story of a police officer by the name of Donnelly, played by Charles Napier. He likes to take vacations once a year to China Lake for some rest and relaxation. The only problem is Donnelly is psychotic and gets his kicks by killing a couple folks to take the edge off. There is also an appearance by William Sanderson (Larry from Newhart) and Mickey Jones (Vacation). China Lake is beautifully directed in 2.35:1 aspect ratio and also set in the desert. It clocks in at around thirty two minutes and is very entertaining. It is easy to see why Harmon got the gig as the director for The Hitcher because he had basically already made a smaller budget version of the same film. 
The second film is titled The Room, and is directed by Rutger Hauer. It is about eleven minutes long and is entirely in black and white. It is the story of Harry (played by Rutger) who is reminiscing about a room that he used to frequent the outer window of in his youth. He relished the mysterious sounds of music that emanated from said window. Years later, the people who lived there moved, and this effected him greatly. Now in old age, Harry has rented the room himself and discovered a startling revelation. The Room is very well directed and actually quite touching for such a short piece of film. Rutger turns in great acting performance as usual.
The second disc is rounded out with screenplay samples, trailers, filmographies. If you are region free and PAL capable, and are even a slight fan of this movie, buy this immediately. I got my copy at www.cdwow.com which offers free worldwide shipping. After using this link to get a two dollar off promo code (http://www3.cd-wow.us/promotion.php?promo_refcode=14282_1&affid=14282 ) the total price including shipping came to only $7.95, an unbelievable price! Get there now!
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