Every few years, Hollywood presents the story of a woman being kidnapped by a stranger as she is about to embark on a new journey. While these movies have similar tropes, they often offer something new in its cinematic expression. These films keep their audience hooked with their thrilling moments of chase and discomfort, leading to a climactic finale that leads to the victim being freed from the clutches of the predator. Diving into familiar themes, writer Mattias Olson and director John Hyams elevate Alone to a competent thriller that is refreshing to watch.
Alone follows Jessica (Jules Willcox), who packs her whole life in a U-Haul and embarks on a new journey. Captured by emotions of nervousness and anxiety, she hits the highway and encounters a car moving at a slow pace, which breaks her rhythm. She tries to pass the car only for the driver to suddenly speed up as she gets alongside him. Her whole life flashes before her eyes, and in a matter of seconds, she almost collides with a truck coming from the opposite direction.
The film is reminiscent of Steven Spielberg’s Duel, where a business commuter is pursued and terrorized by the malevolent driver of a massive tractor-trailer. And for a while, Alone echoes that narrative as Jessica encounters the same car again at a rest stop, slowly making its way in the parking lot later that night. Aware of her surroundings, Jessica immediately gets into her car, but a knock on her car window introduces her to the driver (Marc Menchaca) with a moustache. One look at him and you know he’s bad news. Jessica keeps running into him at every rest stop until it’s no longer a simple coincidence. Later when she is stranded alone on the road, with her tires punctured, she sees the same car approaching, and in a snap, she is drawn into the nightmare of being kidnapped. From this point the film shifts into a story of survival, combined with moments of desperation, trying to escape from her kidnapper.
Jessica being kidnapped isn’t a result of her bad decisions, which many past movies with similar themes have done. Yes, there are familiar stranded tropes, like the lonely road and bad phone reception — but Jessica’s kidnapping transpires through prey-like hunting by the driver. At moments, Jessica is led to believe that she is finally safe, only to pull her back and bring in the pounding fear, not only for her, but for the audience as well who has been taken on the journey with her. It is the decision taken by cinematographer Federico Verardi who from the get-go lets the audience become the invisible passenger in Jessica’s journey with the lens always near her. The score by Nima Fakhrara is not heavy on the ears; it is more subtle and only noticed when the kidnapper nears Jessica driving in the chase sequences.
Alone is led by a great performance from Wilcox, whose character is stepping away from the burden of her husband’s death, only to be dragged into a horrific situation that demands immense courage to escape. The kidnapper, played by Marc Menchaca, effortlessly gives off spooky killer vibes. As parts of his character are revealed piece by piece, more fear is instilled within the viewer, creating a situation even more disturbing. The setting of the forest only makes the already tense situation more severe and frightening, blending the story perfectly into the horror and thriller genres.
Even though it has familiar elements and tropes, Alone still surprises and feels refreshing because of the efforts taken by its makers with smart, creative decisions concerning their characters and premise. Led with great performances, exceptional cinematography and a tense score, Alone is a thrilling ride to take.
