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The Passenger
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The Passenger

The Passenger

1975
Drama
2h 6m
Originally released in 1975, The Passenger is, on the simplest level, a suspense story about a man trying to escape his own life. This haunting film is a portrait of a drained journalist, played by Jack Nicholson, whose deliverance is an identity exchange with a dead man. The film was shot on location and takes Nicholson on an incredible journey through Africa, Spain, Germany and England. (Sony Pictures Classics)

Directed by:

Michelangelo Antonioni

Screenwriter:

Michelangelo Antonioni, Mark Peploe

Starring:

Jack Nicholson, Steven Berkoff, Maria Schneider, Jenny Runacre, Ian Hendry, Ambroise Bia, José María Caffarel, James Campbell

Genre:

Drama

AKA:

Profession: Reporter

Countries:

France, Italy, Spain

Languages:

English, Spanish, French, German
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The Passenger

1975
Drama
2h 6m
Your probable score
Ratings & Reviews Cast Collections Similar Stats Trailer
Avg Percentile 71.05% from 1206 total ratings
Ratings & Reviews Cast Collections Similar Stats Trailer

Ratings & Reviews

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martintellerMartinTeller
Rated 28 Feb 2007
88
91st
I love how Antonioni withholds information to make mysteries. Sometimes the answers are forthcoming, and sometimes not. His sense of languid reflexiveness is simultaneously calming and unsettling. This movie is thrilling in totally unconvential ways. Antonioni uses slow camera movements (like the superb ending) to gradually heighten dread and reveal information.
Rated 28 Feb 2007
kasperlKasperL
Rated 02 Jul 2010
75
77th
Interesting. Although it has all the trappings of a thriller, it's really not. Very 70s in style and pacing, the appeal of Antonioni's film, that which trandscends even the marvelous technical feats on show, is a feeling of longing. The audience are made to really want to understand Nicholson's character, just as he wishes to try on and get to know another personality. The langouriousness supports this, somehow making the rather uneventful film pretty enticing. Schneider proved grating, though.
Rated 02 Jul 2010
magbMagb
Rated 07 Sep 2007
85
73rd
Interesting stuff. The Passenger is the story of a man -- a reporter, fittingly enough -- who is merely a "passenger" in his own life. Seeing Nicholson doing something else than just playing himself is a treat, and Antonioni's direction really shines. Great scenery and cityscapes. The film can be a bit hard to follow: information about the plot arrives in bits and pieces, many things are left open, uncertainty rules the block. But it's a very enjoyable and thought-provoking watch.
Rated 07 Sep 2007
goremeatgoremeat
Rated 07 Mar 2012
90
95th
An elegant and measured film, The Passenger felt like it questioned the freedom of control we can have over our own lives. 'Girl' becomes like a passenger in Locke's own passive journey through Robinson's life. It was fascinating how it played with coincidence within a film scripted so fatalistically. The final long cut scene moving slowly through the window bars, ornately composed and choreographed, was really beautiful. Sombre and slow, yet certainly vibrant.
Rated 07 Mar 2012
vertiggoVertiggo
Rated 22 Jul 2009
90
85th
The human being is 'locked' into an introspective world impossible to be shown. This movie is part of it. Everybody thought about how it should be living the life of another person at least once, just to get out of a tedious moment of life... Interesting movie. The last scene is one of those you got to see many times.
Rated 22 Jul 2009
filliganFilligan
Rated 16 May 2008
64
14th
I suppose when you detach any aspect of this film from it, it will seem fairly good. The performances, direction, screenplay, cinematography (this would be the best aspect; yes, even more entrancing than Nicholson's performance). But the complete package fails to become anything thought-provoking. I suppose this could be mostly attributed to the pacing. It's a very slow film, and one you have to have the energy to commit yourself to.
Rated 16 May 2008
peaceanarchyPeaceAnarchy
Rated 04 Jan 2009
91
95th
A truly magnificent examination of the journey that is life, with the help of a story just mysterious enough to hold your attention and a series of wonderful shots of people architecture and landscapes. The pacing is slow but rarely dull and while the film doesn't give out a whole lot of answers there are enough to have something to think about. Nicholson's performance is also something to behold, much more low key and nuanced than you might expect.
Rated 04 Jan 2009
moraesfelipemoraesfelipe
Rated 21 Sep 2019
80
85th
Incredibly well-shot existential thriller by Antonioni. Not just because of THAT tracking shot depicting a murder. Just look at the rest of its landscapes and architetural footage, its slow but dynamic editing. As a journalist, I get the feeling of being desperate to escape yourself, assume an arm's dealer identity and be pursued by guerrillas.
Rated 21 Sep 2019
slugslug
Rated 11 Jul 2014
9
89th
Being cornered by one's own life and, then, in escape, being unable to free oneself from the inexorable shackles. A tale of freedom and self-worth. The final tracking shot is, of course, incredible.
Rated 11 Jul 2014
ratedarghratedargh
Rated 27 Nov 2013
95
92nd
If you're patient and enjoy a slowly unraveling story, this will be very appealing. The method of revealing how Locke and Robertson came to meet at the hotel is really well integrated. It eschews the obvious, and allows for nuance to fill in the blanks. Nicholson is subdued. He's lost and disillusioned. At first it seems like he simply needs a new direction, maybe a change of career or scenery. It doesn't take long to realize that a new identity is not going to solve his growing malaise.
Rated 27 Nov 2013
staryarabbistaryarabbi
Rated 30 Jun 2013
80
79th
I think especially with Peter Wollen's effect this movie destroys the conventional cause-effect relation of the traditional narrative and underlines that cinema is a tabula rasa in time and space (David Locke derives from David Hume and John Locke). Although David tries to recreate himself, in a deterministic world where everything happens almost without reason in a phenomenological way, he is bound to be destroyed by the cruelty of codes and conditions we have, or the world has, who knows.
Rated 30 Jun 2013
davidthomsonDavidThomson
Rated 02 Sep 2012
99
94th
We are passive, we are passengers. We watch, we are voyeurs. There are people who find this a very pretentious, implausible existencial thriller. I think it is one of the greatest films ever made: a thriller, a mystery, and a sweet, faintly sinister parable on being so loose or free to let the vehicle of narrative, or of film running through the projector, carry you away. For myself, I watch it once a year and find that it grows richer and more suggestive.
Rated 02 Sep 2012
redflagredflag
Rated 05 Aug 2021
97
89th
Much has been said about the film's broad existential themes, but I think the film's very specific message about political commitment in the era of the Tricontinental/OSPAAAL is the real heart of the film. Locke's failure to find meaning is his failure to become a revolutionary and Schneider plays the Angel of History. As another film once said of the era, "We have failed to 'Paint It Black.'" It's no coincidence that Locke dies Sept. 11, 1973: the revolution is over.
Rated 05 Aug 2021
ceekay19Ceekay19
Rated 07 Apr 2019
60
27th
David Locke: "At first he was elated... really high. Faces... colors... landscapes. But then everything began to change. The world was much poorer than he imagined. No one had ever told him how much dirt there was. How much ugliness. He noticed ugliness everywhere. When he was blind... he used to cross the street alone with a stick. After he regained his sight... he became afraid. He began to live in darkness. He never left his room. After three years he killed himself."
Rated 07 Apr 2019
lisa_iilisa-
Rated 02 Dec 2014
6
83rd
jack nicholson stars in an awful lot of acclaimed films. or are they acclaimed because he's in them? on identity, life and fate. clearly, the plot is secondary to antonioni's typical ruminations, though this one is a bit less anxiety and a bit more melancholia. i don't like this quite as much as some of his italian films, those ones being a bit more atmospherically complete, but this is still very, very good, getting better as it goes along, and finishing with a truly majestic penultimate shot.
Rated 02 Dec 2014
damildamil
Rated 29 Aug 2014
65
54th
It's very much about identity. Not being satisfied with who you are and wanting to be someone else and how that's not necessarily a good idea. The direction was good, with a couple of very impressive one-take shots. And Jack Nicholson gives a good performance, too. It's rather slow-moving and I didn't think it was as good as its reputation, but I can admire the filmmaking.
Rated 29 Aug 2014
snallygastersnallygaster
Rated 21 Jul 2013
71
79th
Fascinating. One of those movies that truly needs at least a second viewing to appreciate its complexity.
Rated 21 Jul 2013
buttercupbuttercup
Rated 09 Mar 2013
8
82nd
one viewing is never enough.
Rated 09 Mar 2013
w00dyW00DY
Rated 19 Dec 2012
73
64th
The cinematography is astounding in "The Passenger". The beautiful images with imaginative camera-work are a treat and culminate in a fabulous final few minutes. The plot's an interesting take on the mystery genre and the themes are good. The only problem is the delivery of the dialogue, which strikes me as being off time. I felt Antonioni's "The Red Desert" was let down by the same problem so I assume it's how he wants the dialogue delivered. I can't undestand why, though. It's infuriating.
Rated 19 Dec 2012
muutanetmuutanet
Rated 16 Apr 2011
91
97th
I was wonderfully surprised with this road movie. Jack Nicholson did a great job, as well the director Michelangelo Antonioni and the cameraman. There was many stunning scenes and the pacing of the story was just marvelous. The atmosphere was also nicely created by long, long continous camera drives. The story's got many levels, though it's pretty straight forwards suspense. I also liked the original way the director did the flashbacks.
Rated 16 Apr 2011
joojooJooJoo
Rated 29 Nov 2008
6
95th
I don't think it's an exaggeration to say this contains the most abstractly fascinating character/plot development & ending ever put to film. I am in awe.
Rated 29 Nov 2008
knorozknoroz
Rated 10 Mar 2024
80
70th
You could rent a car from Munich to Dubrovnik in 1975!
Rated 10 Mar 2024
kavuKavu
Rated 20 Jan 2024
84
83rd
Works on multiple levels. Nicholson is great, camerawork is spectacular, and the story is quite interesting.
Rated 20 Jan 2024
tpbradburytpbradbury
Rated 12 Mar 2023
33
22nd
Different, often boring. Good colour. Some mystery
Rated 12 Mar 2023
shockularSHOCKULAR
Rated 03 Sep 2022
75
56th
Slow but interesting character study with a good performance from Nicholson. The one shot take at the end is great and I'm not 100% sure how they got the camera to move through those bars. I was never really bored, but I did keep waiting for something more to happen and it never quite did. The vistas and cinematography are beautiful, as you'd expect from an Antonioni. It also feels a bit like a mystery at times, or at least a mystery as to motive. Good film and pleasantly challenging.
Rated 03 Sep 2022
aflickeringAFlickering
Rated 09 Aug 2022
5
73rd
here antonioni rejects the liberal artists who feign objectivity while revealing more of themselves than their subjects, just as china rejected his doc on similar grounds 3 years prior--to his outrage and, i suspect, chagrin. it's the point at which he comes to fully understand his malaise as that of needing to transition from the passive and abstract toward the active and impactful, bound up in middle-aged fear that death may arrive before even the faintest imprint has been left upon the world.
Rated 09 Aug 2022
sybaritesybarite
Rated 15 Jul 2022
95
98th
This movie is superb. These days, most of what passes through theaters is thoroughly composed and frenetic, so much so that you don't have time to think or feel for yourself. The cinematography here is obviously far more thoughtful. Some shots look like painted tableaux. Antonioni's languid pacing lets you look, note details, and think for yourself. I've never had such a sense that a filmmaker respected his audience. Just lovely.
Rated 15 Jul 2022
barnowlBarnowl
Rated 18 Dec 2021
82
30th
The Passenger took some effort to attend but is well worth a viewing. It's a Sony Picture Classic and Criterion. Pacing seemed slow to me, but a warmness starts to take over by the denouement.
Rated 18 Dec 2021
ephedrinephedrin
Rated 17 Apr 2020
75
81st
slow but twisty...
Rated 17 Apr 2020
hadleyreisHadleyreis
Rated 15 Nov 2019
81
79th
Fucking. Awesome. Long. Scene.
Rated 15 Nov 2019
vandelay1Vandelay1
Rated 30 Aug 2019
70
76th
good movie
Rated 30 Aug 2019
toddsaltertoddsalter
Rated 16 Jul 2019
91
80th
Less plot twists than Chinatown but that's because the movie didn't try as hard to be good. And that made it better.
Rated 16 Jul 2019
nobambanobamba
Rated 17 May 2019
40
30th
I like road movies, I like identity movies, and I even don't mind slow movies, but this one just didn't do it for me. I try to go into films blind so the first segment was confusing for me. Jack Nicholson plays nuance well but he's too mellow at times here to reflect any deep feelings. The suspense with the people looking for him even took away from the plot development for me. Beautiful landscape. Fav scene: outdoors separating from Maria Schneider just before the hotel in Seville.
Rated 17 May 2019
auhasarderikauhasarderik
Rated 14 Nov 2018
7
61st
Intellectual qualities and many well written, enticing scenes, but this is comprised mostly of studied languor. Two hours of vivid emptiness, sort of.
Rated 14 Nov 2018
nathanbatesNathanBates
Rated 11 Nov 2018
60
36th
I can see why this is an art-house favorite. The camerawork is magnificent, the settings are exquisite, and the storyline is just mysterious enough for multiple explanations. But I always find it hard to think a movie is "good" if it doesn't have sympathetic characters that you want to succeed.
Rated 11 Nov 2018
yiannosYiannos
Rated 11 Aug 2017
78
89th
Big stars tend to be distracting and downright unnecessary in art films, but Nicholson rightly plays his position in T.P, wisely giving himself over to Antonioni's stark vision. His style is slightly less rigorous than it was in the 60's, but there are several startling shots, including an elaborate tracking shot in the finale that is simply mindblowing. It's a slow burn melancholy exploration of the great existential dilemma: the impossibility of escaping one's self. Flawed but resonant.
Rated 11 Aug 2017
suture_selfSuture Self
Rated 28 Jan 2016
10
96th
http://www.amazon.com/How-Disappear-Completely-Never-Found/dp/087947257X
Rated 28 Jan 2016
burakcburakc
Rated 08 Mar 2015
84
72nd
Ultimate directing ! Very best but boring for me.
Rated 08 Mar 2015
lonewolf2003Lonewolf2003
Rated 03 Dec 2014
92
97th
2nd viewing
Rated 03 Dec 2014
johnsandwichJohnSandwich
Rated 01 Dec 2014
100
99th
Incredible movie, awestruck by the camerawork and many brilliant visual ideas. And a good, engaging and interesting story and Nicholson is good. But it's so elevated by how Antonioni tells it. Just, damn.
Rated 01 Dec 2014
syntaxerrorsyntaxerror
Rated 14 Aug 2014
9
76th
Amazing pace and cinematography. Loved the last act especially. Time to check out more Michelangelo Antonioni.
Rated 14 Aug 2014
schnofelschnofel
Rated 05 Mar 2014
63
58th
Undecorated images, undisclosed psychology. Is "existential" code for actions we don't understand but which should carry meaning? The ongoing mythical element is the only pull this film has, the rest is both overpopulated and underwritten. It catches the deadening heat of the Spanish countryside.
Rated 05 Mar 2014
shewasSheWas
Rated 09 Nov 2013
57
49th
Bearable, double-speeded
Rated 09 Nov 2013
neonmanNeonman
Rated 31 Aug 2013
75
51st
A slow-moving, sleep-inducing film that keeps you awake with its intriguing storyline, driven excellently by the usual excellent Jack Nicholson. It does seem like one of those films that only gives out what you put it in, which is sometimes a lazy cop-out, but I was still impressed. The second-to-last shot is particularly great.
Rated 31 Aug 2013
mandymandy
Rated 02 Dec 2012
6
43rd
An interesting film to dissect and discuss but the actual process of watching this I found quite dull. Although the themes are timeless it feels dated.
Rated 02 Dec 2012
li0lili0li
Rated 12 Sep 2012
40
13th
Lasted 55 minutes.
Rated 12 Sep 2012
wetwillieswetwillies
Rated 26 Jul 2012
90
80th
Man, the camera work in this picture is astounding. God, that ending sequence is gorgeous, but the whole picture looks and moves nicely. Plus, it's got Jack Nicholson at the height of his career, giving an amazing performance.
Rated 26 Jul 2012
deadmarshDeadmarsh
Rated 08 Jan 2012
40
5th
Boring and uneventful. Good performances from Nicholson and Schneider though.
Rated 08 Jan 2012
theyshoot11theyshoot11
Rated 30 Nov 2011
88
76th
#244
Rated 30 Nov 2011
slantmagSlantMag
Rated 20 Oct 2011
40
97th
"A fatalistic tale of identity, destiny, coincidence, existential malaise, and the boundaries between the real and the imagined." - Nick Schager
Rated 20 Oct 2011
vininimvininim
Rated 04 Apr 2011
78
40th
Good movie, but kind of fragmented.
Rated 04 Apr 2011
barthalenBarthalen
Rated 01 Feb 2011
80
81st
An interesting, albeit a bit slow-moving story. Wonderful locations, a sense of freedom followed by an increasing feeling of being cornered, and an excellently cast Nicholson as a man trying to escape everything in his life. The camerawork was pretty impressive overall, culminating in an insane one-shot-take at the end that just completely floored me with its ambition. Unfortunately, the dubbing was a bit annoying at times.
Rated 01 Feb 2011
tinysausagetinysausage
Rated 02 Oct 2010
84
93rd
Beautifully shot, slowly-unfolding existential mystery with a nice performance from Nicholson. They don't make 'em like they did in the 70's!
Rated 02 Oct 2010
hulothulot
Rated 02 Oct 2010
100
96th
watched: 2010, 2022
Rated 02 Oct 2010
theyshoot10theyshoot10
Rated 13 Jan 2010
88
76th
248
Rated 13 Jan 2010
sirrobbieSirRobbie
Rated 25 Oct 2009
70
53rd
this film was quite boring BUT the last 7min-sequence was INCREDIBLE (I would like to know how was it made??)
Rated 25 Oct 2009
treyatwoodTreyAtwood
Rated 04 Aug 2009
80
80th
Profissione: reporter: 8 // 7 // 9 // 7 // 8 // 8 // 9
Rated 04 Aug 2009
rthornhillrthornhill
Rated 27 Mar 2009
93
85th
Interesting premise. Beautifully presented and well acted.
Rated 27 Mar 2009
theyshoot08theyshoot08
Rated 19 Dec 2008
88
76th
243
Rated 19 Dec 2008
tonydaltonydal
Rated 31 Mar 2008
50
15th
"Which me?" "What do you see now?" (to which I wanted to respond: "Nothing again nothing"). And the parable about the blind guy had me laughing out loud. What a bunch of college-boy seminar hokum. Then there's the 10-minute looking-out-into-the-parking-lot finale. Vincent Canby called this "probably Antonioni's most entertaining film"--which is a little like naming Pink Floyd's most cheerful song. All in all, the reason I don't like cinema--I like movies.
Rated 31 Mar 2008
theyshoot07theyshoot07
Rated 01 Mar 2008
88
80th
# 232
Rated 01 Mar 2008
farzanFarzan
Rated 29 Feb 2008
91
90th
The Passenger is an incredible that is well shot and backed up by two wonderful performances. From beginning to end, Antonioni does a brilliant job of sucking you into the atmosphere of the Passenger. Antonioni uses plenty of long shots that absorb you and make you think. Jack Nicholson is incredible in this and Maria Schneider as well. This film is very clever, and very powerful with a great number of memorable scenes. One of Jacks best.
Rated 29 Feb 2008
moribunnyMoribunny
Rated 16 Oct 2007
78
88th
Sparse and spacious, with themes left open-ended and questions left unanswered, The Passenger is very reocognizably Antonioni. Jack Nicholson seemed a bit out of place here, I don't know why, but it doesn't matter. Many of the things that seem to matter in this film are squashed and silenced under the weight of Antonioni's vision, and there's something indescribably magical about that overbearing vision. Anyway, this has one of the most amazing final shots in the history of film.
Rated 16 Oct 2007
dustydDustyd
Rated 17 Sep 2007
75
79th
Really well shot film
Rated 17 Sep 2007
djrossdjross
Rated 14 Aug 2007
72
82nd
Score based on distant memory.
Rated 14 Aug 2007

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