THE PASSENGER is a Spanish horror movie (org. title La pasajera) with sci-fi and humor that feels both familiar and fresh. Read our full The Passenger movie review here!
THE PASSENGER is a new Spanish horror movie (org. title La pasajera) with comedy and sci-fi to keep the plot moving forward. It’s a debut for several members of the crew and they’ve created an intriguing story. Also, there’s sci-fi and some humor in it so it’s quite a hybrid.
Continue reading our The Passenger movie review below and find it in theaters from June 3, 2022, and from June 28, 2022, you can watch on demand & on DVD.
A sci-fi horror-comedy… sort of!
In many ways, The Passenger is a true genre hybrid. Sure, it’s labeled as just a “horror” movie on IMDb (as of writing this, anyway), but it’s so much more. For one, it has a lot of humor. Also, there is a virus of sorts, that seems to come from outer space, so we’re also dealing with sci-fi.
Basically, it could be called both a horror-comedy or a sci-fi horror movie. But neither would really be accurate. Instead, it’s more a sci-fi horror-comedy. Well, sort of, anyway.
The craziness begins when three female passengers meet up with a man in a ride-sharing deal. The man is the driver and he is a classic Spanish macho man who loves bullfighting and doesn’t need a GPS. However, don’t be fooled. He’s also a protector and kind – in his own way.
A virus from outer space?
The passengers consist of a single woman, a mother, and her daughter (a teenager). The sci-fi horror stuff involves a very penis-looking creature shooting out something that is absorbed by a passenger. So yeah, there’s quite a bit of comedy involved in that whole setup as well.
Nobody reacts rights away, but the infected people do change quite a lot. Nothing I want to spoil here, but some of it is revealed in The Passenger trailer. The penis-looking creature is also in the trailer, so you can check it out if you want. It’s not super crude… just funny.
Also, I should mention that they hit someone walking in the middle of the road at night. This is actually when the real dangers begin. The tagline is “Don’t sit next to her” so obviously, there’s something wrong with her (maybe she also got near the strange penis-looking creature?!).
Admittedly, the trailer is rather spoiler-filled but it doesn’t ruin the overall experience. It just sets the stage for what to expect and you have to show some of these crazy moments to manage the expectations. Also, I can’t claim to be especially familiar with the cast members, but I liked them all.
Actually, the driver has played roles in many series (including the Spanish prison series Vis a vis) and was also in [REC] 4: Apocalypse (2014).
Watch The Passenger in theaters and later on demand
The Passenger is the feature film debut of co-director Raúl Cerezo. He was also the author of the story which is based on an original idea that came about in a very classic way. He was going to the Sitges Film Festival via a carpool trip (not unlike the one in this film) and his mind wondered.
Isn’t that always how it goes?! I mean, they say “write what you know” and he definitely went with something very close to home here. The original screenplay was supposedly written by Asier Guerricaechevarría and Javier Echániz but it was rewritten by Luis Sánchez Polack. For that reason, the two first get a “developed by” credit while Lis Sánchez Polack gets the writing credit.
The other co-director is Fernando González Gómez and the two are working on more projects already. Yet another debut is that of cinematographer Ignacio Aguilar. The Passenger is his feature film debut and there are many awesome shots in the movie. Perfect for this genre hybrid. Hopefully, we’ll be seeing more from many of these feature film newcomers soon.
The Passenger (org. title La pasajera) is out in theaters from June 3, 2022. It will then be released on demand and on DVD on June 28, 2022.
Details
In Theaters: June 3, 2022
On Demand & DVD: June 28, 2022
Directors: Raúl Cerezo, Fernando González Gómez
Writer: Luis Sánchez-Polack
Cast: Ramiro Blas, Cecilia Suárez, Paula Gallego, Cristina Alcázar
Plot
A group of strangers sharing a ride have their trip interrupted when the driver hits a woman hiking in the dark of night. They decide to help her, but quickly learn that something is wrong and that they shouldn’t have let her in at all.
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