Strangers on a Train (DVD, 1997)

Strangers On A Train was, for Hitchcock, a breakout film. At least some say it was, and evidently Hitchcock worked on it as if it would be one. The problem was, after such great films as Shadow of A Doubt, Spellbound and Notorious, he hit what many feel was a slump. During the apparent low point of this part of his career, he directed The Paradine Case, the innovatively filmed Rope, Under Capricorn, and Stage Fright. Frankly, the critics—and his audience—weren’t enthralled.

The movie opens on a train with a shot of two pairs of feet. The camera follows those feet around the station and back on the train and finally we see they belong to Bruno Anthony (Robert Walker) and the famous tennis player, Guy Haines (Farley Granger). Anthony recognized Haines and the two talk for several minutes. During their conversation, we get the impression that Bruno isn’t normal. Guy is estranged from his wife—who won’t give him a divorce—and Bruno wants to kill his father. Before the train stops, he has suggested to Guy that the two “trade” murders.

Because the two were only “strangers on a train”, Bruno suggests that if they trade murders, no one would ever guess. Guy laughs it off. But later, we watch as Bruno strangles Guy’s wife at an amusement park. The shot is fantastic. It belongs at the top with such famous shots as the stabbing in Psycho and the silent killing in Sabotage.

Guy gets in hot water when he’s accused of the murder and continually followed by Bruno. Bruno confronts him several times and wants Guy to kill his father. The movie ends in a grand finale at the carnival/amusement park.

This unassuming movie was clearly a breakout for Hitchcock. It brought him back into his comfortable genre. But it didn’t happen on its own. Hitch worked carefully on this movie as evidenced in the multiple layers. And that’s only the beginning.

Robert Walker, who had previously been playing American adventure-hero type roles, made the best performance of his career in a role reversal. His superb acting makes Bruno almost as scary as Norman Bates of Psycho. While Farley Granger seems a little too hostile, at times, for this part, he did a good job. Even Pat Hitchcock, who played a substantial role as the sister of Guy’s lover, did great. A stellar movie well worth watching.

I love anything Alfred Hitchcock and I think Robert Walker was a mighty fine actor. Walker's performance in this movie is captivating, thrilling and spine tingling.

Walker's portrayal of deranged psychopath "Bruno" is one of his best performances.

I had first seen this movie on TV a few years back and just had to own a copy so when I saw a great deal on a new DVD of this movie....I just had to place a bid!!!!

Maybe you have just discovered Alfred Hitchcock, or maybe you have been collecting his work for a long time. No Hitchcock collection would be complete without "Strangers on a Train." In classic black and white, it is visually most satisfying - a film replete with unforgettable images. You will never again look at the merry-go-round as an innocuous child's toy!

Nothing beats a good Hitchcock classic - -and this one is no exception! Loved it back in the day and I love it twice as much now. I do not see the difference though, between the Hollywood version and the British version this set came with.

Was very surprised and pleased to learn there were two versions on my one dvd - Hollywood and British. Keep up the good work. This movie used to be in a former collection again, and always leaves me breathless to even believe there could be such a nut as Bruno - and there just might be one in real life, believe me!