Thriller based on a real-life crime
Based on a true-life murder spree, “The Hitch-Hiker” is a film noir directed by Ida Lupino. Two middle-aged pals, Roy Collins (Edmond O’Brien) and Gil Bowen (Frank Lovejoy) on a fishing trip, pick up a hitch-hiker on the road. Little do they know that their new passenger is the convict Emmett Myers (William Talman, DA Hamilton Burger on the “Perry Mason” TV show), who has already left a string of dead motorists in his wake. Abused as a child, he learned early to despise people. Myers forces them at gunpoint to drive through the southwestern desert into a Mexican town where he can catch a ferry boat to escape the dragnet closing in on him.<br /><br />The role is based on the real-life mass murderer William Cook, whose crimes took him halfway across the country, from Missouri to California. He slaughtered six people in 1950-51 before Mexican police captured him, and he was executed in San Quentin’s gas chamber on December 12, 1951. Though the names of Cook and the two hostage survivors were changed, the events follow closely what actually happened.<br /><br />Talman makes quite an effective villain, with an eye affliction and a sneer that convey danger. Basically a hostage film, its plot centers on the long trek that the two friends are forced to make. At one point, they attempt an escape but it’s foiled by Myers. Both O’Brien and Lovejoy are excellent as men trying to help each other emerge from a bad situation alive.<br /><br />Taken straight from headlines of the time, the screenplay was written by Daniel Mainwaring, who also wrote “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” Studio head Howard Hughes denied him screen credit because of his political radicalism during the House on Un-American Activities witch hunts. Released just three months after Cook was executed, “The Hitch-Hiker” fictionalizes his final run.<br /><br />Lupino, who starred in the feature films “High Sierra,” “They Drive By Night,” and “Out of the Fog,” all made in 1940-41, turned to directing when she was bypassed for better roles. No other woman was directing films at the time. She had previously directed four films focusing on women, so “The Hitch-Hiker” was quite different. She would go on to direct many episodes of TV series.<br /><br />The only noir picture made during the heyday of film noir by a woman, “The Hitch-Hiker” is a gripping, fast-paced melodrama with escalating suspense. Lupino employs many trademark touches of noir, including deep-patterned shadows falling across characters, a dramatic score (by Leith Stevens), and a swift pace. The major noir element missing is the femme fatale; “The Hitch-Hiker” has an all-male cast.<br /><br />Bonus features on this Region A release include an audio commentary and  several trailers.
The movie title "The Hitch-Hiker: Kino Classics Remastered Edition [Blu-ray]," available on Movies & TV, has received an average rating of 4.2 from 179 reviewers. 
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This title falls under the categories of Movies & TV, Blu-ray and Movies. 
The additional details include the following in key-value format :
 {"Genre": "Mystery & Suspense/Film Noir", "Format": "Multiple Formats, Blu-ray, NTSC, Original recording remastered", "Contributor": "Edmond O'Brien, Frank Lovejoy, Ida Lupino, William Talman", "Language": "English", "Runtime": "1 hour and 10 minutes", "Is Discontinued By Manufacturer": "No", "MPAA rating": "NR (Not Rated)", "Product Dimensions": "0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 2.4 Ounces", "Item model number": "KV1201BR", "Director": "Ida Lupino", "Media Format": "Multiple Formats, Blu-ray, NTSC, Original recording remastered", "Run time": "1 hour and 10 minutes", "Release date": "October 15, 2013", "Actors": "Edmond O'Brien, Frank Lovejoy, William Talman", "Studio": "Kino Lorber films", "Number of discs": "1"}

Here is a brief synopsis of the title : The only true film noir ever directed by a woman, this tour-de-force thriller (considered by many, including Lupino herself, to be her best film) is a classic, tension-packed, three-way dance of death about two middle-class American homebodies (Edmond O'Brien and Frank Lovejoy) on vacation in Mexico on a long-awaited fishing trip. Suddenly their car and their very lives are commandeered by psychopathic serial killer Emmett Myers (William Talman). BRAND NEW TRANSFER / 35 MM Archival Restoration from the Library of Congress, Exclusively on the Kino Classics label!.