One Of The Most Underrated Horror Films Of 2023 Is Now On Prime Video
2023 was a solid year for horror films, and even still, there were plenty of gems that went criminally underseen. Fortunately, because horror fans are some of the most rabid (see: passionate) fans around, even movies denied multi-million dollar ad campaigns can still find their people through word-of-mouth praise, fan art, and obsessive gushing. "The Ruins," "Jamie Marks is Dead," "Swallowed," and "Midnight Kiss" director Carter Smith's latest feature film is also his best, which is why it's such a shame that "The Passenger" (read our review here) is only now picking up mainstream attention. A thrilling two-hander starring horror fan favorite Kyle Gallner and relative newcomer Johnny Berchtold, "The Passenger" is the spiritual successor to Robert Harmon's "The Hitcher," and just as brutal.
Berchtold's Randy is not just your average fast food worker, he might as well be invisible. He's passive to the point of enduring exploitation from everyone around him, so when his coworker Benson (Gallner) snaps into a killing spree and tells Randy to come with him on the run, he complies. These two exist on polar opposite ends of the spectrum of masculinity, both impossible to like as individuals due to the frustration you feel witnessing their actions, but somehow the perfect recipe for one of the most compelling horror movies in years.
Smith and screenwriter Jack Stanley present a film with all of the hallmarks of road and hostage horror films, but with the film doubly as a character study of these two men, it's hard to look away even as Benson's unpredictable behavior escalates with every minute. There's no use screaming at the screen hoping Randy can hear us and will run to safety because we know he won't.
But now that the film is available on Prime Video, more people are getting the chance to see if Randy eventually learns how to stand up for himself.
Kyle Gallner and Johnny Berchtold are phenomenal
Kyle Gallner is no stronger to alternative genre fare, successfully transitioning from a career playing teenagers in flicks like "Jennifer's Body," "The Haunting in Connecticut," and the remake of "A Nightmare on Elm Street" to gripping roles in films like "Dinner in America" (a film I love so much I have it tattooed on my arm), "Mother May I," and the box office juggernaut, "Smile." Despite Gallner's off-screen presence proving him to be one of the kindest folks in the biz, the industry certainly loves casting him as dangerous weirdos and dirtbags. Fortunately, no one can play these maligned lesser-thans quite like he can, and Benson is tailor-made for his talents. In Gallner's more than capable hands, the threat of Benson's explosive violence is everpresent, even when his palpable charm lulls the audience (and Randy) into a false sense of safety.
Meanwhile, Johnny Berchtold is well on his way to becoming a household name, and horror filmmakers would be wise to keep him in the genre space. He brings such an honest vulnerability to Randy that even when you want to jump through the screen and shake him for being such a pushover, it's because deep down, he's tapping into that evolutionary part of our brain that wants to protect him from harm. It's when we learn more about Randy's traumatic past that Berchtold truly shines, with every emotional monologue confession doubling as a highlight reel for this Scream King in the making. With such a stripped-down script, "The Passenger" lives and dies by their performances, and the pairing of Gallner and Berchtold feels like lightning in a bottle.
A film deserving of more praise
Similar to "The Hitcher," part of the horror of "The Passenger" is that the movie doesn't provide any answers as to why Benson has decided to embark on a killing spree, nor does it fully explain why he felt the need to bring Randy along for the ride. "There's something about you," Benson tells Randy. "There's something fixable — and I believe that." What this means is completely up to our interpretation. Perhaps Benson sees a little of himself in Randy before he was pushed to the brink, seeing the potential in molding him to be his creation. Or maybe he recognizes that he's at the end of the line given his actions, and is hoping that helping crack Randy out of his shell could be his final good deed.
Along their road trip, the pair crosses paths with a woman named Miss Beard (a fantastic Liza Weil), one of Randy's former teachers that Benson intentionally seeks out on his quest to "fix" Randy. She adds a compelling, downright moving performance just when it feels like you've figured out the end of the line for "The Passenger," reminding us that we should never try to predict what Benson has planned and instead just stay along for the ride.
"The Passenger" was distributed as part of a picture deal between Blumhouse TV and MGM+, which also included Roxanne Benjamin's "There's Something Wrong With The Children" and Yoko Okumura's "Unseen." As much as I understand why every single company seems to think having their own individual streaming app will make them money despite being choked out by the three major players, I wish this series of films had been given a theatrical release or at least a debut on a platform with a larger subscriber base. Here's hoping now that "The Passenger" is on Prime Video, the film will earn its overdue flowers.