The Girl of the Train is a textbook example of dull, cliche abundant psychological thriller - both story wise and visual. We’re offered a situation - a woman (why always “girl”?) is desperate, abandoned by cheating husband and drinking. We’re slowly led to believe she’s pathetic and that her drinking problem ruined her marriage. She's shown being aggressive (in a time jump, there’s hundreds of them). The husband tried.
She rides the train to work every day, which passes by the house where she and her husband used to live. Now, husband has new wife and baby. Woman is angry, drinks more. Half point.
Now, everything gets nicely reversed. What you’ve seen isn’t quite it. Was she aggressive? Nope, it was the husband. Did she try to kidnap his baby from his new wife. It surely looked like it, not any more though. She’s actually ok, he’s the abusive, manipulative monster. And a murderer. And here we’re supposed to say Fuck, well how about that! Except all you wish to say is Fuck, it’s 2016, we’re not new to this anymore, please, give us something to fret about.
The glimpse outside the moving train window is a waisted premise, it’s a shame. Look what Hitchcock did with a still (rear) window.
No comments.