Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
After a plane crash, a young therapist, Claire, is assigned by her mentor to counsel the flight's five survivors. When they share their recollections of the incident -- which some say include an explosion that the airline claims never happened -- Claire is intrigued by Eric, the most secretive of the passengers.
Passengers (2008) is a modest mystery-thriller elevated significantly by its twist ending, which recontextualizes the entire narrative and lands with genuine emotional resonance. The plot is competent if slow-burning, keeping the mystery alive through careful misdirection. Acting from Anne Hathaway and André Braugher is solid but unremarkable. Cinematography is functional and unremarkable, favoring a muted, subdued palette without much visual ambition. The ending is the film's standout achievement — it's genuinely surprising and emotionally affecting, lifting the whole endeavor above its modest execution.