The Girl on the Train

I came to this film on Amazon thinking I was going to see the 2016 movie by the same name. I must read the captions more closely. If I had I would have avoided what turned out to be a juvenile essay on the meaning of love and life.

When i was 17 or so. after being in love four or five times, and reading too much Sartre in between, I wrote several short stories about love and life filled with overwrought observations that didn't wear well with time. My Dad, a writer, tried to be kind. Save them because they will tell you who you were then and believe me you'll forget, he said. And while they're not very good they do have the virtue of being sincere.

Precisely what this film lacks; instead its gratuitous world-weariness is simply cynical. My juvenile efforts may have been sincere but they didn't ring true because I lacked experience.The author of this film seems to suffer the same deficiency - he fantasizes instead of seeing , thinking, and observing. Which is strange; you'd think someone who is experienced enough to make a technically proficient two hour movie would have moved beyond juvenile fantasies about these potent subjects. Alas, not so in the 2013 version of The Girl on A Train. Do yourself a favor and wait for the 2016 movie by the same name which by all accounts is pretty good.

Unfortunately there are 4 movies with this same title, all produced between 2009 - 2016, so before you watch this movie, make sure you are seeing the right one. At the time that I am writing this review there are only 10 prior reviews, with an average of just 4.5 stars out of 10. I almost didn't watch this movie because of its low overall score but I'm very glad that I did because it turns out that this suspense/mystery/love film is at least 9 stars. Compared to the usual mystery movie it is a big breath of fresh air. The dialog is very thoughtful, in most places philosophical, with the characters discussing the relationship of love to stories and of story-telling to reality (and much more). After so many mystery movies with standard dialogs and plots, this film is very refreshing.

The movie involves several parallel stories, with each addressing the nature of the role of deceit and love in life. For example, an elderly Jewish man tells of his experiences in Nazi Germany while interviewed by the hero (a film-maker named Danny Hart, played very aptly by Henry Ian Cusick). In parallel, Danny himself is being interviewed by someone else (I won't say who) and tells his own story of meeting a young woman on a train. Each character, in turn, tells their own stories about yet other characters.

There are so many twists and turns in the plot that I was reminded of The Magus. At the end of the movie I spent quite some time thinking about the statements made by the characters and about the film's conclusion, which in general is the sign of a very good movie -- like reading a short story by Somerset Maugham.

The movie's plot structure might be too difficult for the average viewer but will be thoroughly enjoyed by those who like a complex, thoughtful, intriguing movies regarding good, evil, love, betrayal, truth, art, reality -- for them this movie will deliver an unique experience (like Wood Allen's 1989 movie Crimes and Misdemeanors).

I normally don't review movies but I felt that this movie deserved a much higher rating. I will not give it a 10 just to raise it's rating. I believe it deserves a score of 9. The reason that it is not a 10 (at least for me) is something I cannot discuss here because I don't want to include any spoilers.

I think that a movie of this caliber (although shot in just 17 days) deserves a much wider audience. I have no connection of any sort to anyone involved in the making of this movie.

This story does pull you in initially, but by the end turns into mush, with its pseudo-philosophical outlook, which another reviewer astutely summarized, as " a combination of arty arrogance and teenage angst". The story of a Nazi concentration camp victim, which the protagonist was making a documentary about, was the most interesting part of the film. The film presents love, as the biological relationship between members of the opposite sex. I believed this in my adolescence ( "teenage angst" ), but have mostly managed to get beyond this, thank God. The monologue near the end is delivered in such a solemn, pontificating manner, it initially sounds profound, until you think about it for a couple of minutes. You then realize, it is totally concerned with an adolescent's viewpoint of love/lust. The movie would have been much better, if this speech, was omitted. I did find it represented women as conniving and irresponsible, through the female lead. It gave the pathetic, popular excuse, that if the woman is sexually attractive enough, this is OK.

The acting was quite good, as well as, the cinematography.

A very interesting movie that starts with a simple plot line then slowly becomes a rather complex story that I found difficult to follow at times. Maybe it is the constant editing between Danny with Lexi then Danny with Detective Martin then Danny with Morris (the survivor of a Nazi internment camp).

I understood Danny's obsession with Lexi but became lost with their relationship and the murder plot. This is actually a well performed story but difficult to get involved with as you just don't care about the characters and the plot skips around between too many people talking and Danny telling the whole story to the detective.

I would recommend this film to anyone seeking a mystery movie but you better pay close attention or have the movie long enough to watch it twice.

Henry Ian Cusick plays Danny who is an Englishman making documentaries in the US. One day he sees a girl on a train who has been crying. He is strangely drawn to her and decides to act on his impulses. She is enigmatic and mysterious and he finds himself wanting to see her again.

Then they do meet and she uses her feminine ways to get him to act out of character and take him down a path that once he has set foot on it, there is no turning back.

Now this is a well written, filmed and acted film. There is a lot of clever observations on life and some real chemistry between the main players. The film works by using flash backs to flesh out what has already transpired and it is done rather well. The problem is that it is all a bit too contrived and unbelievable and the dénouement is just a bit too much to be taken seriously so it loses marks big time.