Strangers on a Train

1951 Film Noir - Thriller

Cast:

Guy Haines: Farley Granger

Bruno Antony: Robert Walker

Anne Morton: Ruth Roman

Barbara Morton: Patricia Hitchcock

Senator Morton: Leo Carrey

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

A tennis player with political aspirations meets a psychopath on a train who thinks they have both agreed to a plan to commit a murder for each other. A criss-cross.

Tennis player Guy Haines (Granger) meets eccentric psychopath Bruno Antony (Walker) while travelling by train. Bruno seems to know quite a bit about Guy's personal life. He knows Guy is dating the daughter of a Senator and that he is in the process of divorcing his cheating wife.

Bruno devises what he feels is a foolproof plan. He will murder Guy's wife and Guy will murder his domineering father in return.

Guy of course doesn't take Bruno seriously and laughs the whole thing off. But Bruno takes action after he learns that Guy's wife has double crossed him and will not agree to a divorce.

When Guy refuses to murder Bruno's father, Bruno insinuates himself into Guy's life in an attempt to convince him to go through with it.

When Bruno realizes there is no hope of Guy killing his father, he feels betrayed and decides to frame Guy for the murder of his wife.

The police suspect Guy of the murder, but he can't reveal Bruno's scheme until he finds some evidence. He realizes they won't believe him. Additionally, he can't inform the senator and his daughter because Bruno has threatened to frame him for the crime.

Robert Walker is terrifying as the sinister and demented Bruno Antony.

Patricia Hitchcock is charming as Anne Norton's younger sister, Barbara.

The scenes between Guy and Bruno are masterful in building suspense.

There's a typical climactic Hitchcock ending at an amusement park which is one of the most dangerous scenes he ever filmed. It put stuntmen in such danger, he vowed he would never do anything like it again.

The stunning black-and-white cinematography gives the film a shadowy, noir-like ambiance.

Alfred Hitchcock ranks among my favorite directors. His films often start in a picturesque and charming setting, gradually introducing sinister elements to lead the viewer into suspense.

Patricia Hitchcock, the daughter of Alfred Hitchcock, was not given any special treatment and was expected to perform at least as well as, if not better than, others.

In the novel on which this movie is based, Bruno has homosexual tendencies. Hitchcock could only make slight and vague suggestions of this to bypass the censors of the time.

This was the last completed movie of Robert Walker's. He died 8 months later.

Boffo Buff