 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
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Strangers on a Train
- Review Date: March 7, 2005
- PG
- Genre: Thriller
- 1951
Common Sense Media says
Classic nail-biter is a must for thriller fans.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this is solid nail-biting entertainment for those who enjoy stylish, well-crafted suspense. Don't expect a moral here, but do expect a lot of suspense and some dark subject matter that makes it inappropriate for young viewers who should probably stick to Scooby-Doo. The British version devotes slightly more screen time to Bruno's Liberace-like flamboyance, giving that fateful meeting with Guy on the train a vague air of flirtation. Parents concerned about homoerotic content need not be; it's presented discreetly, merely as a character trait.
What's the story?
From the novel by Patricia Highsmith, Alfred Hitchcock's STRANGERS ON A TRAIN takes a seemingly innocent conversation between tennis player Guy (Farley Granger) and well-heeled Bruno (Robert Walker) and turns it, by degrees, into a grueling worst-case scenario. A chance meeting on a train embroils the two men in a shrewd murder scheme that quickly goes awry. Co-scripted by Raymond Chandler, this stylish, suspenseful 1951 Hitchcock classic will have the whole family squirming and second-guessing each other about the outcome as an innocent man is drawn into a lunatic's murder scheme. The master of suspense gives us a dead body, but doesn't leave us asking who, where, when or why. We witnessed the crime. We understand the murderer's motive. If this were a straightforward murder mystery, the end credits would be rolling, but because it's an Alfred Hitchcock picture it's just beginning. So buckle up, because the tension builds relentlessly all the way to the climax.
Is it any good?
In the hands of a less-competent director, the story might not have amounted to much, but Hitchcock builds the suspense relentlessly, almost sickeningly. That's why they call him the master.
This adaptation devotes slightly more screen time to Bruno's Liberace-like flamboyance, giving that fateful meeting with Guy on the train a vague air of flirtation. Parents concerned about homoerotic content need not be; it's presented discreetly, merely as a character trait. There's no great moral to be found here ("Crime doesn't pay" is stretching it a little). This is just solid nail-nibbling entertainment for those who enjoy stylish, well-crafted suspense.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about the hallmarks of a suspense film, and how continued suspense, especially when the tension and danger continues to increase, is often more thrilling, entertaining, and downright scary than films filled with constant, gratuitous violence.
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AGE
Thrilling and Frightening Suspense...
STRANGERS ON A TRAIN is a great movie. It isn't quite 5-stars, but it is a wonderfully tense and engaging thriller.
There is no language or sex, though it is stated that Guy's wife is pregnant by another man. There is an onscreen murder (strangling) but it isn't graphic. Several scenes are tense, but not too tense for family movie night.
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AGE
A great suspense movie for families! It's definitely suspenseful enough for parents and not too scary for older kids (a mature 9+). One of Alfred Hitchcock's best movies I have seen.
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AGE
A Suspence Filled Feature
This thriller is truly a nail bitter that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Younger children will probably be disturbed by the film.
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AGE
May scare younger ones
Great Alfred Hitchcock movie! Some iffy stuff though with Guy and his wife at the beginning. He is getting divorced because she has been having affairs with other men and she is pregnant. But it's a brief moment and really only mentioned once. The violence is very minimum also!
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AGE
Strangers on a Train
A fantastic thriller, and a Hitchcock classic.
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AGE
Excellent cinematography
There is one scene in particular involving glasses that everyone who's seen the movie knows what I'm talking about that is truly genius. Another classic Hitchcock film, keeping you on your toes most of the time. The premise is interesting, and Robert Walker's performance is especially entertaining.
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AGE
Way too much for a PG. Not the best Hitchcock at all.
My rating: PG-13 for violence/tension including murder scenes, some suggestive content and references, and for smoking and alcohol use throughout.
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| Topics: | book characters |
| Studio: | Warner Bros. |
| Director: | Alfred Hitchcock |
| Cast: | Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman |
| Genre: | Thriller |
| Run time: | 103 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | July 3, 1951 |
| DVD release date: | March 27, 1991 |
| MPAA rating: | PG |
| MPAA explanation: | some violence and tension |
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