Strangers on a Train

 3.5/4

Starring: Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman, Patricia Hitchcock

Rated PG for Some Violence and Tension

Alfred Hitchcock knew better than anyone that violence and action are not synonymous with suspense.  As he put it, "There's no terror in the bang, only the anticipation of it."  There's very little action of the conventional sort in "Strangers on a Train," but that doesn't limit the suspense.  What makes this movie such a white-knuckler is Hitchcock's slow burn approach and a brilliantly psychotic villain.

Guy Haines (Granger) is a tennis star who is hopelessly in love with Anne Morton (Roman), the daughter of a senator.  Unfortunately for him, he's already married.  He explains this to a creepy fan on a train.  The man, whose name is Bruno Antony (Walker), is sympathetic.  He has issues with his domineering father.  That's when Bruno hatches a plan: he and Guy will kill each other's problems.  Since they don't know each other or their victims, they'll get away with it.  Guy, who already thinks this guy is a weirdo he wants nothing to do with, humors him.  But when his wife is found strangled to death at an amusement park, his conversation doesn't seem so harmless.  And Bruno wants Guy to fulfill his part of the bargain.

It's a terrific premise for a thriller, and Hitch makes the most of it.  What makes it so memorable is that he doesn't turn on the tension full blast from the start.  There's very little running around and almost no action.  It's all psychological.  Bruno won't go away, and when Guy refuses to kill his father, he escalates his one-man war.  He follows Guy (his sudden appearances no doubt influenced John Carpenter in "Halloween"), invites himself to social functions where Guy will be attending, and that's just the start.

The true star is Robert Walker, who turns Bruno into a terrific maniac.  Bruno is nuts, and even someone like Guy (who isn't the brightest bulb in the bunch) can see that right off the bat.  Unfortunately, he's also smart.  That makes him dangerous, and Walker helps us see that.  The scariest individuals are ones who aren't sane but think they are.  Bruno thinks his actions are justified by the arrangement he believes he has with Guy.  In his mind, he did Guy a favor and expects to be done one in return.  Walker is brilliant in the role.  Unfortunately this was the actor's final completed role; personal problems led to his accidental death in 1951, the year this film was released (his final film was completed with stunt doubles and archive footage from this film).

Walker steals the show, but he is surrounded by a solid supporting cast.  Farley Granger plays an ideal lead: he's handsome, a straight arrow, and devoted to his loved ones.  Unfortunately, Ruth Roman doesn't fare as well as his lover.  I fault the writing.  She's good when Anne displays a backbone, but too often she falls victim to the cliches of female characters from the time period: being a Hallmark Channel lover or a blubbery mess.  Much more interesting is Patricia Hitchcock (the director's daughter), who play's Anne's younger sister Barbara.  She thinks the situation is, in its own way, cool, and her spunk makes her so much more interesting than the vapid Anne.

The screenplay isn't flawless, but that hardly matters.  Hitchcock ratchets up the tension like the master that he is.  For those who love psychological thrillers, this isn't one to miss!