The Man in the White Van

In Florida in the mid-1970s, Annie Williams lives with her older sister Margaret, younger brother Daniel, and their parents. Annie loves horseback riding and spends much of her time in the surrounding countryside with her horse Rebel. The setting establishes a close-knit family and a teen drawn to nature.

Annie frequently rides Rebel and explores the woods and open landscapes around her home. Her outings paint a picture of a carefree teenage life rooted in the Florida countryside, but they also place her in places where danger could loom.

A white van begins appearing in places Annie frequents—on trails, on her way home, and in the woods. The vehicle seems to be following her, and she reports the sightings to her parents who dismiss them as paranoia.

Margaret and most friends are skeptical of Annie's fears, while her best friend Patty believes her. The growing doubt from peers isolates Annie and compounds the sense of danger she feels.

Interspersed flashbacks reveal earlier victims who were abducted by the same or a similar man in the white van. These scenes establish a chilling pattern and hint that the threat has been operating unnoticed for some time.

Annie's fear intensifies as the van's presence becomes more threatening. She becomes increasingly isolated, and her margin of safety shrinks as the threat closes in.

On Halloween night, the stalking culminates in Annie being abducted. The tension built up over weeks comes to a head as she vanishes into the night.

Annie wakes in the back of the white van, fights back, and manages to open the door and jump out as it nears her home. She bangs on the front door and Margaret pulls her inside just as the abductor breaches the house.

The sisters flee through a window, locate the van, and hop inside to drive away. The man pursues them, and Annie reverses the van, hitting him as he lies on the ground. A police officer arrives thanks to Patty's help, but the attacker is nowhere to be found.

The family appears to be trying to move on, sharing a dinner together and resuming normal life on the surface. Rebel the horse is gone, suggesting changes in Annie's world and routines.

In the climax, the man in the white van escapes again, leaving Annie and her family with a lingering sense of threat. The predator’s danger is not contained, and the audience is left with unresolved fear.

A mid-credits scene shows a family on a camping trip with a white van parked nearby, implying that the predator is still out there and may strike again. The image reinforces the ongoing, unseen danger in Annie's world.