Movie Review: Strangers on a Train

Year: 1951
Color: Black and White
Genre: Thriller/Crime
Directed By: Alfred Hitchcock
My Rating: 8.5/10

I saw this movie a couple years ago and have been meaning to see it again for a while, so I rented it yesterday. Re-watching it made me realize how amazing it really is.

Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 masterpiece stars Farley Granger as tennis star Guy Haines, who encounters by chance strange yet charismatic Bruno Anthony (Robert Walker) on a train. Bruno tells Guy of a brilliant scheme he has about how to commit the perfect murder: two men, completely unrelated to each other agree to commit each other's murder, thus eliminating the threat of being caught for motive. He proposes that he kill Guy's hussy of a wife, so Guy is free to marry the lovely senator's daughter, Anne Mortan. In exchange, Guy must kill Bruno's father, who is trying to have Bruno institutionalized. Thinking that Bruno is a complete wacko, Guy laughs the idea off, only to find himself in a tight spot when Bruno actually commits the crime.

Farley Granger gives a solid performance as the tortured Guy, but the performance Robert Walker delivers as the psychopathic Bruno is brilliant, unforgettable and intensely eerie. This, combined with Hitch's direction, homo erotic subtext, and genius cinematography render this film not only a timeless classic, but an incredible artwork. Give it a shot: you won't be disappointed.

Cool Stuff:

-The 1987 comedy, "Throw Momma from the Train" with Danny DeVito and Billy Crystal is a spoof-remake of this film
-Cat Stevens said his song, "Peace Train" is inspired by this movie
- Shows like CSI and Law and Order have periodically "borrowed" the idea of "swapping murders" from this film.