At eight days, the Transsiberian Express from Beijing to Moscow is the longest train journey in the world. So why wouldn’t it be the perfect backdrop to one of the most suspenseful journeys in quite some time? Paul Anderson’s (Beirut, The Machinist) presents the Transsiberian in a way that makes you think of Alfred Hitchcock. It’s dark. It’s moody. It’s twisted. It’s purposeful. It’s rooted. It’s intense. It makes you feel like a fellow passenger on this train, watching everything unfold next to you rather than on a screen projected in front of you. Oh. And it’s cold. It’s like an Arctic cold. We feel that sense of dread in the deepest of winter in the coldest places. Yet, it never feels like we are even close to approaching freezing. So it certainly adds to the ambiance of our film.
An American couple, Roy (Woody Harrelson – Rampart, The Messenger) and Jessie (Emily Mortimer – Lars and the Real Girl, Match Point), takes the Transsiberian Express as an adventurous side trip on their return home from a Christian mission in China. Roy is a free spirit in that there isn’t a person he doesn’t believe he can’t befriend, and he likely believes humans are inherently good. Jessie is a bit more reserved and practical. She loves Roy’s freshness and love of life but feels others can take advantage of him because of his trusting nature.
Also, while Roy has been on the straight and narrow his entire life, Jessie was wild in her younger days. But she’s been clean for several years. She tends to keep her cards more closely to her vest. The genial Roy quickly befriends their cabinmates. The mysterious Spaniard Carlos (Eduardo Noriega – Vantage Point, The Last Stand) and his much younger, US-born girlfriend Abby (Kate Mara – Transcendence, Man Down) cause Jessie to act cautiously. By the tone established in this part of the film, we can assume these people will become deeply involved with the built-up drama. Carlos knows a lot about traveling, whereas it seems like Abby is just along for the ride.
While most of the movie is on the train, several scenes are not. These off-the-train scenes might be the most pivotal part of the film. Our characters are separated in these scenes, and certain secrets are established among a duo or trio that need to be kept from others. Carlos also has some lustful attraction for Jessie. It’s evident to everyone except for Roy.
Harrelson does a great job of showing just how innocent and oblivious Roy can be. He’s a protagonist we can love, but he’s not there for Jessie in the way she needs him or how we want him to be. Grinko (Ben Kingsley – House of Sand and Fog, Bugsy) shows up as a Russian narcotics detective. Roy meets him during a layover after missing the train (it sounds a little confusing, but the train has stops where you are allowed to get off and roam, and Roy misses the announcement that the train that Jessie, Carlos, and Abby are on is leaving. This results in the three having to get off at their next step and wait for Roy). But a lot can happen in a short time. Questions arise, and not all of them have a suitable answer)
Plot 10/10
Character Development 9/10
Character Chemistry 9/10
Acting 9/10
Screenplay 9/10
Directing 9/10
Cinematography 10/10
Sound 9/10
Hook and Reel 9/10
Universal Relevance 9/10
92%
A-
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