|
|
Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock Written by: Raymond Chandler and Czenzi Ormonde; Adaptation by Whitfield Cook, from the novel by Patricia Highsmith Starring: Farley Granger, Ruth Roman, Robert Walker & Leo G. Carroll What the box says: Strange thing about this trip. So much occurs in pairs. Tennis star Guy (Farley Granger) hates his unfaithful wife. Mysterious Bruno (Robert Walker) hates his father. How perfect for a playful proposal: I'll kill yours, you kill mine. Now look at how Alfred Hitchcock reinforces the duality of human nature. The more you watch, the more you'll see. "Isn't it a fascinating design?" the Master of Suspense often asked. Actually, it's doubly fascinating. For Hitchcock left behind two versions of Strangers on a Train. The original is an all-time thriller classic. A recently found longer prerelease British print offers "a startling amplification of Bruno's flamboyance, his homoerotic attraction to Guy and his psychotic personality" (Bill Desowitz, Film Comment). The laying bare of Bruno's hidden nature, along with great set pieces (head-turning tennis match, disintegrating carousel) and suspense as only Hitchcock can deliver, makes for a first-class trip. Brent's Note: This DVD contains both the original Theatrical version and the British Preview version which was only just discovered in 1991. The Preview version is only two minutes longer but is a subtly different film than the Theatrical version. |
