‘Passenger’ Review: Melissa Leo in a Ho-Hum Highway Horror

As anyone who’s been on one knows, lengthy road trips can be a trying experience. The new horror film from director André Ovredal (The Autopsy of Jane Doe, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark) runs only 94 minutes, but it captures the feeling all too well. Like a bright headlight facing you dead on or the sudden honk of a loud horn, only the jump scares keep you from falling asleep during the seemingly interminable Passenger.

This is the sort of generic “things that go bump in the night” chiller that seems more suited for late-night cable than theatrical release, especially in an era when superior efforts have lifted the horror genre to a higher level. The story couldn’t be simpler: A young couple hit the highway in their souped-up van to experience the freedom of life on the road, only to discover that a malevolent force bent on their destruction is tracking them every step of the way. As if highway patrolmen weren’t scary enough.

After a brief prologue in which two young male drivers learn the lesson that you should never stop on the side of the road to pee (and not because of passing traffic), we’re introduced to the uber-enthusiastic Tyler (Jacob Scipio) and the less-than-eager Madi (Lou Llobell, Foundation), who ditch their comfortable Brooklyn apartment for a nomadic life. Their van equipped with a Bob Ross bobblehead — the kitschy artist’s mantra, “There are no mistakes, only happy accidents,” becomes a running theme — they go looking for adventures.

It isn’t long before bad things start to happen, as their growing fears are confirmed when they meet the nomadic Diana (Melissa Leo, whose haunted expression mostly indicates that she sees the chance of a second Oscar slipping away). She offers them several rules of the road as advice, such as “Don’t ever stop” and “Don’t drive at night.”

“People don’t take trips, trips take people,” she counsels, sounding like the worst public service announcement ever.

After repeatedly spotting the titular demonic figure (Joseph Lopez), who looks like an even more desiccated Iggy Pop, and nearly getting strangled by her seatbelt (been there), Madi skims through a scary book at a gift shop and learns about the “Hobo Code,” devised by itinerants a century ago. Among the symbols she learns about is three slashes, meaning “Not safe here,” which she soon sees carved on the side of their van.

More would-be scary incidents ensue, the most notable and stylishly filmed of which is an encounter with the Passenger while they’re using an outdoor projector to screen the classic film Roman Holiday (complete with the Paramount Pictures logo prominently spotlighted). Hearing mysterious noises, they use the illuminated images of Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn’s indelible faces to search the woods, and one can only hope the actors’ heirs are receiving royalties.

At a nomad camp, they again run into Diana, providing Leo the opportunity to score a few more minutes of screen time and helpfully describe the malevolent figure as the “Highwaymen from Hell,” which would have made for a far better title.

Lacking any sort of thematic heft to make the proceedings truly spooky, proficient helmer Ovredal mainly relies on a series of jump scares, complete with sudden loud noises, to keep us on edge. It works well enough on a superficial level but there’s so little depth to the main characters (not the fault of the performers) and so little resonance to the supernatural threat that any feelings of dread will be quickly forgotten. The film may provide a slight boost to the sale of St. Christopher medals, but as far as highway journeys go there’s nothing in it scarier than the current price of gas.