Aahana Swrup
The thriller film ‘Alone’ follows a horrifying narrative that revolves around a woman’s unfortunate run-in with a dangerous predatory man. Jessica, grieving over a recent tragedy, helms the narrative as she undertakes a long drive to move on with a new life. Yet, while on this journey, the woman ends up falling victim to a depraved strange man who manages to abduct the woman after hours of stalking. As a result, after Jessica wakes in a faraway cabin in the middle of the woods, she only has herself to rely on as she faces the elements in an attempt to escape her attacker’s torment.
The film maintains a strained environment, allowing the viewers an unnerving understanding of Jessica’s gruesome demise as she finds herself in an impossible fight for survival. Consequently, as the woman undergoes increasingly traumatic situations, one can’t help but grow curious about her ultimate fate. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Alone Plot Synopsis
After the tragic death of her fiance, Jessica prepares to move out of her home and into a new city. Nevertheless, instead of waiting for her parents as planned, the woman simply gets a U-haul trailer to hitch to her car to make the multiple-day drive herself in solitude. As such, given the vulnerability that comes with traveling alone, specifically as a woman, she remained vigilant of appropriate precautions.
Yet, Jessica doesn’t think much of it when she overtakes a particularly slow driver on an otherwise empty road. Therefore, she’s shaken when the driver retaliates by speeding up, almost getting her into a drastic accident. Although the woman tries not to overthink after she emerges from the incident unscathed, she can’t help but remain on guard when she spots the same car driving by a gas station the following night.
For the same reason, Jessica’s worry grows when an overtly friendly man introduces himself to her outside her motel the next morning, identifying himself as the owner of the car from before. While the stranger remains friendly, his nosy questioning about the woman spells trouble. Consequently, once Jessica somehow runs into the same man again— this time in the middle of a road— she’s cautious.
After informing Jessica that his car broke down, the stranger attempts to hitch a ride with her. Furthermore, he becomes increasingly agitated when she offers alternative solutions. As a result, Jessica flees from the scene in panic, leaving the man behind. Their meetings stop feeling coincidental when the man finds her driving down the road at nighttime. Thus, as Jessica tries to drive away from him, she contacts the authorities, highly trepidatious.
Although Jessica’s initial alarm turns out to be false, she realizes her suspicions about the strange man were correct when her car swerves off the road due to a slashed tire. Shortly after, the stranger arrives, breaking into the woman’s car and knocking her out. The next time Jessica wakes— she’s in a dark and damp basement.
The strange man from before has abducted her and plans to sexually abuse her— but not before tormenting her psychologically. As such, he forces her to look through the memories on her phone with her fiance while divulging details of his death via suicide. Despite the man’s psychological torture, Jessica gathers her strength the next morning and manages to escape from the cabin while the man is distracted.
Nonetheless, it doesn’t take long for the man to catch up to her, leading to a deadly cat-and-mouse chase, wherein Jessica gets stabbed in her bare feet and jumps into a river. Eventually, the woman runs into another man, Robert, presumably out in the woods for a hunt. Even though Robert remains dubious of Jessica since she attempts to attack him, he takes pity on her and tries to help her.
Still, Jessica’s abductor— revealed to be named Sam— foils their escape by trying to convince Robert that Jessica is his mentally unfit sister, who has been making up tall tales after undergoing a traumatic event. By momentarily suspecting Jessica’s truth, Robert ends up falling victim to Sam, who shoots the other man with his own gun while the woman manages to flee.
The same night, Sam tries to draw Jessica out of her hiding spot in the woods through manipulation, but she remains hidden, knowing better than to believe his fake promises of a fair fight. Therefore, in the morning, she’s able to sneak into Sam’s car while the man buries Robert. However, before Jessica can call for help using her abductor’s phone, Sam returns, pushing Jessica to hide in the trunk of his van while Sam drives the car back to his cabin.
Alone Ending: What Happens to Sam?
Initially, Sam relies upon manipulation and deceit to achieve his demented wishes. After failing to sweet-talk Jessica, an individual evidently on her own, he tries to prey on her perceived kindness by faking an emergency to get inside her car. Nevertheless, Jessica refuses to sacrifice her safety and continues avoiding him. Although Sam manages to kidnap the woman regardless of her best attempts at maintaining her safety, he continues with his mind games well after the abduction.
By locking her inside the basement, alluding to his past victims, and forcing Jessica to relive the trauma of her fiance’s death, Sam torments her mentally. Afterward, once the woman escapes, he continues with his manipulative ways by tricking Robert. Although the same racks up a body count, Jessica still manages to slip through his grip. Similarly, his poor attempts at goading the woman into facing him fail.
Every step of the way, Jessica prioritizes her immediate safety, knowing she’s the safest and as far away from her psychotic kidnapper as possible. Nonetheless, if the woman truly wishes to survive after sustaining a stab and bullet wound, she needs outside help. For the same reason, she climbs into Sam’s car even though the man stands a few feet away from the vehicle, burning Robert.
Consequently, Jessica ends up trapped in the trunk when Sam returns, unaware of the additional presence inside his car. During the ride, Jessica manages to contact the emergency helpline, whispering cries for help. As a result, Sam realizes something is up. Thus, Jessica realizes she must confront Sam to escape from the car with her life. Therefore, she attacks Sam with a wrench, and the following altercation results in a car crash.
When Jessica drags herself away from the flipped car, she takes Sam’s phone with her, holding on to it as a lifeline. Still, as she nears a clearing, she realizes there’s no way to escape the man, who’s bound to follow after her, any longer. As such, she does the one thing that can truly hurt Sam. Earlier during her escape from the cabin, Jessica overheard Sam talking to his family— a wife and a daughter— pretending to be a model citizen out of town on a meeting.
Thus, before Sam can catch up to Jessica, the woman calls his wife and reveals the truth to her. By doing so, the woman ensures that regardless of her final fate, someone knows about her abuser’s crimes and holds him accountable for them. As such, in possibly one of her final moments, Jessica burns Sam’s safety net, condemning him to the consequences of his actions.
Does Jessica Die?
Throughout the film, Jessica pleads, runs, and fights to find a way out of her situation. She took every measure to ensure she never ended up in a situation like this in the first place. Therefore, now that she has no choice but to face Sam headfirst, she ensures that even if she dies, she takes Sam down with her. Now that Sam’s wife knows about her husband’s horrific crimes, justice is likely the only thing awaiting the man.
Meanwhile, Jessica knows the following moments hold the key to her freedom. Earlier, she spotted a chopper flying around in the sky. The helicopter is likely a rescue vessel sent out by the authorities after they tracked Jessica’s emergency call. If she submits to Sam, all her efforts will be in vain. Therefore, as their confrontation evolves into a physical altercation, Jessica fights tooth and nail. The woman refuses to give up her fight, clawing and biting at the man and taking his hits in strides,
Eventually, Jessica manages to get her hands on Sam’s sharp hunting knife, driving it into Sam’s body. Even if she managed to escape the woods without any bloodshed, she would have lived her entire life looking over the shoulder for Sam to pounce again. Ultimately, by gutting Sam on the forest floor, Jessica wins her freedom once and for all. In the end, as Jessica lies beside Sam’s dead body, the helicopter lands nearby, confirming the woman’s escape from the hellish landscape.
Read More: Is Alone (2020) Inspired by a True Story?
