Strangers on a Train (on DVD)

Strangers on a Train [DVD Strangers]

Based on a suspense novel by Patricia Highsmith, this suspense/thriller is one of Alfred Hitchcock’s most unforgettable masterpieces of movie-making! When professional tennis player Guy Haines (Stewart Granger) encounters the psychotic socialite Bruno Antony on a train ride, and they get into a conversation, Bruno sees an opportunity to solve a problem he has. Bruno wants to eliminate his father, and he thinks Guy would like to see his shrew of a wife, Miriam, dead. Bruno proposes trading murders — he’ll kill Miriam and Guy will kill Bruno’s father — no ties to each other, thus the perfect murders. Guy doesn’t take Bruno seriously, so when Bruno actually does kill Miriam and Guy refuses to kill Bruno’s father, a suspenseful game of cat-and-mouse begins in which Bruno tries to set up Guy for Miriam’s murder, and Guy has to try to prove his innocence and also alert the authorities to the real killer. In true Hitchcock fashion, the tension is racheted up to unbearable levels, the camerawork is innovative, and there’s a heart-stopping confrontation on a merry-go-round gone out-of-control. The performances in this film are among the best in all of Hitchcock’s suspense films, particularly Robert Walker as the psychotic Bruno Antony.

This particular DVD release of this film is a double-sided disc, with Side A being the recognizable American release of the film (1951), and Side B being an earlier British pre-release version of the film, which has a much closer look at the mentality of Bruno Antony. Both are well-worth your time!

[If you like this item,  you might like these too – Pretty much anything else in the Hitchcock stable of films, but particularly Frenzy (1972) and Rear Window (1954).] [Also available in traditional print format.] [ Internet Movie Database entry for this film ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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