The Hitch-Hiker (1953)

100% of critics liked it
(5 reviews)
63% of users liked it
(1,682 ratings)

Daniel Mainwaring took this story right out of the headlines of the day, penning this true story of a mass murderer who was eventually executed in San Quentin's gas chamber. Released during McCarthy's witch-hunt, Mainwaring was not given credit because Howard R. Hughes, who produced it under RKO,… More Daniel Mainwaring took this story right out of the headlines of the day, penning this true story of a mass murderer who was eventually executed in San Quentin's gas chamber. Released during McCarthy's witch-hunt, Mainwaring was not given credit because Howard R. Hughes, who produced it under RKO, refused to give credit to any "radicals." The story is that of two men on a fishing trip who pick up a hitchhiker. He turns out to be a sadistic psychopath who has committed multiple murders, a sociopath who hates humanity because of his own abuse as a child. He also has an affliction which terrifies these two men: an eye which is permanently open, thereby never allowing them to know if he is really asleep or just faking it--something which he does with regularity to scare them...letting them take off and then meeting up with them just as they feel they have escaped from him. A tense thriller skillfully directed by the only female director of the time, Ida Lupino, it is a suspenseful tale of terror on the highways. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 11 min.
Directed By: Ida Lupino
Written By: Ida Lupino, Collier Young, Robert L. Joseph
Genres: Drama, Mystery & Suspense, Classics

In Theaters: Apr 29, 1953 Wide
On DVD: Oct 14, 1999
Studio: Acme DVD Works

Critic Reviews

Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
This suspenseful film noir is superbly acted and sharply helmed by Ida Lupino, one of the few women directors in Hollywood of the 1950s.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Talman's performance as a sadistic sleaze was powerful.

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Featured Audience Ratings

Bob S

Ultimately a bit of a shaggy dog story - but the first hour is tight, unnerving ride through the postwar male American psyche.
AJ V

A pretty good movie, but it could be better, especially now that there have been so many other movies like this one.
Ken S

Great little Thriller by the only female directors of Hollywood's Golden Age, Ida Lupino. It starts out amazingly and then sort of peters out toward the end, but overall very enjoyable.
Michael G

Hitch-hiker starts off really great with an incredible opening. Lupino's a great director and I wish she did more. The acting is great, namely Talman who makes you flat-out despise him. He's no Rutger Hauer, but this is more disturbing on a realistic level. Ultimately,… More
Hitch-hiker starts off really great with an incredible opening. Lupino's a great director and I wish she did more. The acting is great, namely Talman who makes you flat-out despise him. He's no Rutger Hauer, but this is more disturbing on a realistic level. Ultimately, it's good and not great, but definitely worth checking out.
Emily B

Interesting due to the fact that it is directed by a female, Ida Lupino. Didn't find anything special here, just didn't quite work.