Carter Smith came out of the gate swinging. His debut film, 2008’s “The Ruins,” got a wide release. After that, the director scaled back. “Jamie Marks Is Dead” is a consciously low-budget affair, delivering contemplative chills rather than the gross-out thrills of “The Ruins.” Then, he dropped not one but two movies in 2023; “Swallowed” is an all-out body horror gag-fest more akin to his debut, while “The Passenger” is another beast entirely.

The latter would have especially benefited from a theatrical release, because it features some killer sound design that would’ve been overwhelming on a massive speaker system. It follows a meek fast food worker named Randy (Johnny Berchtold) who gets bullied at his job. One day, his coworker Benson (Kyle Gallner) snaps. He walks out to his truck, grabs a rifle, comes back inside, and soon Randy finds himself in the middle of a mass casualty scenario. Only, Benson wants to teach him a lesson. Soon, Randy is Benson’s passenger, taken along on a wild ride to settle old scores as the police close in.

The gunfire is explosive, the percussive sounds punching the audience in the chest, and a theatrical experience would’ve heightened that. A big screen would’ve also helped emphasize the nuanced, expressive work Berchtold and Gallner are doing, their characters locked in a dance that’s by turns terrifying and touching.