In August of 1944, as the Allies close in on Paris to declare it an open city, Nazi officer Paul Scofield (pictured at left) is emptying out a museum full of valuable art that he has acquired (i.e., stolen) during the war and shipping it all into Germany on a train. Burt Lancaster, head engineer of the railroad heading out of town, is asked to work with the underground to stop Scofield's plan. Reluctant at first (he thinks there are more important sabotage activities in which to engage), he is eventually brought around to help. The acts of sabotage are small at first, though still risky, and manage to slow down the train's departure. Finally a kind of 'Mission: Impossible' trick is pulled: the train is essentially sent in circles, not leaving France, but signs along the road are changed to make Scofield and his men think that the train is in Germany. The deception works to a point, but when Scofield finds out what's going on, he threatens to kill a truck full of French hostages if Lancaster doesn't give up. At over two hours, the tension here slacks off on occasion, but if you like to see trains running, derailing and crashing, this is the movie for you. The physical production by director John Frankenheimer is quite impressive, and Lancaster and Scofield are excellent as the protagonists who we figure will make this a duel to the death. Jeanne Moreau is underused in the small role of a innkeeper who crosses paths with Lancaster. Despite being a WWII movie, there is no battlefield action here, but chase and train action should satisfy war film buffs. [Blu-ray]Wednesday, May 27, 2020
THE TRAIN (1964)
In August of 1944, as the Allies close in on Paris to declare it an open city, Nazi officer Paul Scofield (pictured at left) is emptying out a museum full of valuable art that he has acquired (i.e., stolen) during the war and shipping it all into Germany on a train. Burt Lancaster, head engineer of the railroad heading out of town, is asked to work with the underground to stop Scofield's plan. Reluctant at first (he thinks there are more important sabotage activities in which to engage), he is eventually brought around to help. The acts of sabotage are small at first, though still risky, and manage to slow down the train's departure. Finally a kind of 'Mission: Impossible' trick is pulled: the train is essentially sent in circles, not leaving France, but signs along the road are changed to make Scofield and his men think that the train is in Germany. The deception works to a point, but when Scofield finds out what's going on, he threatens to kill a truck full of French hostages if Lancaster doesn't give up. At over two hours, the tension here slacks off on occasion, but if you like to see trains running, derailing and crashing, this is the movie for you. The physical production by director John Frankenheimer is quite impressive, and Lancaster and Scofield are excellent as the protagonists who we figure will make this a duel to the death. Jeanne Moreau is underused in the small role of a innkeeper who crosses paths with Lancaster. Despite being a WWII movie, there is no battlefield action here, but chase and train action should satisfy war film buffs. [Blu-ray]
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It's probably the best film about Art that you'll ever see - about how Art can motivate people, and create a sense of worth that's nothing to do with economics: a number of people make sacrifices for art that most of them have never seen. It's also about the limitations of Art - the senior German officer's interest in and knowledge of it does not alter the fact that he's a Nazi, or humanize him in any way.
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