Reviews
[Review] Quibi’s “The Stranger” Gives Modern Rideshare Spin to ‘The Hitcher’ Story
To stave off falling asleep at the wheel in 1986’s The Hitcher, C. Thomas Howell’s character picks up a hitchhiker. It proved to be the biggest mistake of his life, as that hitchhiker -Rutger Hauer in an iconic villainous role- ruthlessly stalked, tormented, and toyed with him for the rest of the film. What would his sadistic character look like in the present, with a glut of impressive tech at his disposal? That’s how Quibi’s The Stranger kicks off the first three episodes, making this psychological thriller the streaming service’s most promising offering yet.
Maika Monroe (It Follows, The Guest) stars as Clare, a recent transplant from Kansas to Los Angeles. An aspiring writer, she’s barely settled in and unfamiliar with the lay of the land, including the city’s severe traffic. It gives her job as a rideshare driver an extra layer of difficulty, which comes into play when she picks up her latest passenger, Carl (Dane DeHaan, A Cure for Wellness), from a sprawling Hollywood Hills estate. Carl insists on sitting in the front seat and wastes no time at all making Clare uncomfortable. When he pulls out a knife and confesses to murder, it sets off a cat and mouse chase from which Clare may not escape alive.
Created, written, and directed by Veena Sud, The Stranger nails its introduction to both the characters and the tech-reliant world, all while getting straight to the thrills. Establishing Clare as a cinephile-turned-aspiring writer from Kansas draws easy parallels to Dorothy’s fish-out-of-water journey in The Wizard of Oz, and quick references and dialogue to the film flesh out her character. Including the naivete. It might have worked for Dorothy in a fantasy setting but proves to be a handicap for Clare in a thriller setting. As for DeHaan, his character demonstrates serious tech-savvy before we even set eyes on him. There’s no question the actor knows how to do creepy well.
Like The Hitcher, Clare’s first brush with her twisted passenger results in her leaving him in the dust. Also like The Hitcher, Carl deftly isolates his prey from any that could potentially aid her. Well, save for a gas station clerk, played by Zombieland: Double Tap’s Avan Jogia, a plucky ally, much like Jennifer Jason Leigh’s character in the 1986 film. His introduction sets up the idea that the only way to combat tech is with tech, one that’ll likely come into more extended play throughout the twelve episodes. While the initial episodes share many similarities to the ’86 classic, it remains to be seen whether it’ll diverge enough to forge its own path.
Of all Quibi’s genre offerings thus far, Sud leans into the short format in a way where others struggle. She relies on details and her actors to flesh out their characters while focusing on creating an unnerving atmosphere and thrills to keep viewers hooked. It’s a streamlined narrative set throughout one harrowing night for poor Clare, and so far, it seems as though Sud intends to turn the time constraints into an asset. Even if the remaining episodes retain their familiarity with The Hitcher, the style and effective creepiness deliver plenty of worthwhile thrills.
Movies
‘Dante’ Review – A Paramedic’s Night Shift Turns Into A Blood-Soaked Nightmare [Tribeca 2026]
There’s something very special about horror stories that depict a single night that gets progressively out of hand and covers a lifetime of woe by the time the sun rises.
It’s a difficult balancing act, but one that’s magical when it’s properly executed, and this claustrophobic structure connects. Hugo Ruiz (One Night with Adela) rises to the challenge with Dante, a chaotic experience that’s pumping adrenaline, burning rubber, and snorting drugs from frame one and then rarely lets up. It feels like it starts in the middle of a film’s third act and then pushes itself to go to even more radical and exciting places.
Ruiz’s Dante is even more confident and accomplished than his freshman feature. It feels like a spaghetti western that’s trapped in a slaughterhouse. It’s Bringing Out the Dead by way of Quentin Tarantino after he’s come off a giallo binge session. It’s a white-knuckle, blood-soaked ride into hell that keeps its audience on edge until the credits roll.
Ruiz accomplishes something quite remarkable with Dante, a subversive take on Dante’s Inferno in which a paramedic ambulance driver, Eduardo (Chino Darin), gets embroiled in a vicious crime caper that pushes everyone involved closer to salvation. Dante, as its title suggests, isn’t exactly subtle with its allusions to Dante’s Inferno. That being said, none of the film’s efforts to match its source material’s themes and tone ever feels forced. It’s a bold, risky adaptation of the classic 14th-century epic poem, but it’s also a distinct film that stands on its own and becomes an incredibly satisfying sophomore entry in Ruiz’s career.
Eduardo innocently responds to a standard emergency call, only to find himself tending to a crime boss’s wounds and caught in the middle of a deadly feud between two erratic rival kingpins. Dante digs into an impossibly tense situation with a small cast of larger-than-life characters who really feel like they’re trapped in some layer of hell. Every minor victory is met with yet another physical trial and morality test for Eduardo to overcome. It also distills this harrowing encounter down to its most exciting elements so that Dante is a fast, easy watch that’s beautifully paced and always finds the right moment to heighten its mayhem.
There’s a shocking brutality here. It’s a visceral, gross, oozing horror film that’s often hard to look at. It’s a movie that lingers on not just pain, but how the human body can become such a disgusting mess. Ruiz lingers on gross visuals that reduce people to raw meat and emotion. However, this screaming, bloody mess is also an intimate chamber piece and character study. All this extreme subject matter serves a grander purpose and builds to a sweeping salvation rather than purely existing to be sensational. Dante is vicious, but it’s the film’s heart that stands out the most when everything is said and done.
Among the criminal capitulations is a deeper commentary on faith, passion, and identity. Eduardo is repeatedly confused for a doctor throughout, which is just one of several instances that reflect its themes regarding duality and labels. Eduardo’s wild night highlights life’s transactional nature and how everyone is the same in death. It’s the ultimate equalizer. Alternatively, Dante looks at the weird, unpredictable places in which people can find humanity, connection, and purpose in life, even if it’s surrounded by death and darkness. Everyone is looking for that spark and light that helps us heal.
In a film full of strong performances, Darin’s work as Eduardo is really spectacular. It’s a performance that’s so deceptively layered that it makes you want to immediately watch the film again as soon as it’s ended. Ruiz’s film is also really smart in response to when it digs deeper into Eduardo’s life and personality. It’s easy to picture Dante beginning with Eduardo carrying out several normal rounds to get a better sense of who he is before danger strikes with Mario. The film also excels as it asks the audience to make their own conclusions on this blank slate before the film begins to pull back the curtain on him.
Eduardo is a compelling moral compass throughout this dark night of the soul, albeit a character who is hardly infallible. Some of Dante’s strongest moments are when Eduardo’s mental state is unclear, and the audience is left to wonder if he’s actually getting a rush from this on some level. Eduardo is left to process many heightened emotions on his own. However, there’s also a real camaraderie between Eduardo and Mak (Ester Expósito) that’s genuinely sweet and progresses in a very natural, effortless manner. Their chemistry helps power the second half.
At one point, Eduardo muses that “a director must take risks.” This is a film that certainly adheres to its own advice.
Dante reaches a satisfying conclusion that feels like the natural endpoint of this story, only to then launch into such a wild turn that transforms the film into something considerably darker and a powerful meditation on the pervasiveness of pain and suffering. The ending guarantees that this is a movie that’s destined to be debated by both its lovers and haters.
There’s thankfully a lot more going on here so that Dante doesn’t live or die based on its ending alone. It’s just a brave step forward that reiterates why Hugo Ruiz is a filmmaker to look out for.
Dante made its world premiere at Tribeca 2026; release info TBD.
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