Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression in Kansas, Passengers presents two stories of love and loss. It follows the equally bleak and hopeful young lives of two couples, Holden & Anna and Jonathan & Cora, and chronicles the often unassociated consequences of committing oneself to the course of passion. Touching upon tangential forces that can affect liaisons, including religion, socioeconomic status, family relations, and physical proximity, Passengers poignantly exposes the faults of adolescent and pressure-filled relationships. How can someone truly in love become tied to lust, betrayal, indecision, or the refusal to compromise? At the core remains the story's continuous message: as a dry, poor, desperate country is bound to recover with enough effort and fidelity, so, too, are devoted lovers. Wonderfully inspiring and, at times, devastatingly sad, Passengers captures four lives unraveled and strengthened by an affection as needed as a panacea to the fiscal crisis. After all, fortune may only lead you to the tracks. Persistence and toil represent the authenticity of the ride.