THE HITCH-HIKER

My buddy Kelly Greene and I watched THE HITCH-HIKER (1953) years ago and loved it. I watched it again yesterday and my admiration for this film went up a notch. It's a classic little film noir with a simple, straightforward story.

Emmett Myers (William Talman), is a hitch-hiking serial killer, a droop-eyed demon thumbing a ride to hell across the American Southwest. He kills three people during the opening credit sequences, cleverly staged scenes in which we see only the killers' legs from the knees down. Roy Collins (Edmond O'Brien) and Gilbert Bowen (Frank Lovejoy) are two buddies on their way to a fishing trip in the town of San Felipe on the Gulf of California. But they change their minds, go to Mexicali and then into Mexico where they encounter Myers, an innocent appearing motorist in need of gas. They pick him up and the terror begins.

Myers needs the two men, their car, gear and supplies to make it to Santa Rosalia on the gulf coast. From there, he can catch a ferry across the gulf and escape into the heart of Mexico. The three men play an increasingly dangerous series of mind games as they travel through the desolate desert. Collins and Bowen are constantly trying to devise a way to escape but Myers is always one step ahead of them. The Mexican police, working with U.S. agents, broadcast false information on the radio, making Myers think he's not being pursued. Eventually their car breaks down, leaving the three men to walk to Santa Rosalia where freedom waits for Myers and death for Collins and Bowen.

THE HITCH-HIKER is told with remarkable efficiency and economy by director Ida Lupino who doesn't waste a single moment of the films' 71 minutes of running time. It's a textbook example of how to get the most out of a low budget and short shooting schedule with every shot and set-up in service to the story. It's a bravura job of film making, the only American film noir of the classic period to be directed by a woman.

Lupino, while primarily known as an actress, had a long career behind the camera as well. She directed six feature films beginning with NEVER FEAR (1949) and ending with THE TROUBLE WITH ANGELS (1966). Lupino also worked in television directing episodes of such classic series as ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS, THRILLER, HONEY WEST, THE RIFLEMAN, THE UNTOUCHABLES, and THE FUGITIVE, among others.

In addition to Lupino's masterful direction, THE HITCH-HIKER benefits from a taut screenplay by Lupino and Collier Young, terrific on-location cinematography by Nicholas Musuraca and solid performances by the three main stars. Talman, who would go on to play long suffering District Attorney Hamilton Burger on television's PERRY MASON, is a stand out. He conveys an air of palpable menace, a stone-cold psycho killer who will casually murder anyone who gets in his way.

THE HITCH-HIKER is a first rate film noir that every fan of the genre should see. Even if you're not a noir-head, you'll like this one. Highly recommended.