As I read through the reviews for "Lady on a Train", I was very surprised at how positive they were. After all, I thought the movie was poorly written and, at times, a bit dumb. Sure, the actors tried their best (it did have a pretty impressive supporting cast for Deanna Durbin), but the film often just made little sense.
When the film begins, Nikki Collins (Durbin) is on a train bound for New York. However, at one of the stops, she sees a man being killed outside her window. Does she pull the emergency cord to alert the driver to stop? Nope. Does she make the conductor stop the train? Nope. Instead, she waits until the train arrives at the station and then goes to the nearest police station--and babbles like an idiot and explains what she saw in a very poor manner. Naturally, the policeman at the desk thought she was a nut. Does she go to another cop or another police station? Nope...she decides to find a mystery writer and get his help!!! He tells her to go to the cops--and instead she runs off on some insane lark to investigate the case for herself!
Soon Nikki reads that the man she saw murdered was a rich guy who's allegedly died by falling off a ladder. So, she tells the cops, right? Nope. Instead, she sneaks onto the dead guy's property and is nearly torn apart by guard dogs. When she is discovered, the guy who found her thinks she's come for the reading of the will--and she then poses as Margo Martin--the nightclub singer who is about to inherit everything! Not surprisingly, this offers her a chance to sing a few songs at the nightclub--where no one (including the band) seemed to notice that she wasn't Margo! Huh?!
There's a lot more to it than this. However, whether you'll care will depend on if you buy the story. I didn't. I hate a film where repeatedly the viewer needs to accept that the leading character NEVER behaves rationally or makes normal decisions. It made watching the film a real chore for me--though as I said before, most reviews on IMDb are very, very favorable. The bottom line is how willing are you to suspend disbelief? And, how much do you adore Miss Durbin? If the answer to both is yes--than by all means watch and most likely you'll enjoy the film. I just couldn't get past the sub-par writing and Durbin deserved better. For me, it's a watchable time-passer and not much more.
When the film begins, Nikki Collins (Durbin) is on a train bound for New York. However, at one of the stops, she sees a man being killed outside her window. Does she pull the emergency cord to alert the driver to stop? Nope. Does she make the conductor stop the train? Nope. Instead, she waits until the train arrives at the station and then goes to the nearest police station--and babbles like an idiot and explains what she saw in a very poor manner. Naturally, the policeman at the desk thought she was a nut. Does she go to another cop or another police station? Nope...she decides to find a mystery writer and get his help!!! He tells her to go to the cops--and instead she runs off on some insane lark to investigate the case for herself!
Soon Nikki reads that the man she saw murdered was a rich guy who's allegedly died by falling off a ladder. So, she tells the cops, right? Nope. Instead, she sneaks onto the dead guy's property and is nearly torn apart by guard dogs. When she is discovered, the guy who found her thinks she's come for the reading of the will--and she then poses as Margo Martin--the nightclub singer who is about to inherit everything! Not surprisingly, this offers her a chance to sing a few songs at the nightclub--where no one (including the band) seemed to notice that she wasn't Margo! Huh?!
There's a lot more to it than this. However, whether you'll care will depend on if you buy the story. I didn't. I hate a film where repeatedly the viewer needs to accept that the leading character NEVER behaves rationally or makes normal decisions. It made watching the film a real chore for me--though as I said before, most reviews on IMDb are very, very favorable. The bottom line is how willing are you to suspend disbelief? And, how much do you adore Miss Durbin? If the answer to both is yes--than by all means watch and most likely you'll enjoy the film. I just couldn't get past the sub-par writing and Durbin deserved better. For me, it's a watchable time-passer and not much more.