Night Train to Munich [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray]

Director: Carol Reed Carol Reed

Overview

Rex Harrison astonished his fans by donning a Nazi uniform in the British suspenser Night Train (originally titled Night Train to Munich). Actually he's a British agent, working undercover to rescue a Czech inventor from the Gestapo. The inventor's daughter (Margaret Lockwood) becomes the unwitting pawn of a genuine Nazi (Paul von Hernreid, just before he became Paul Henreid) during a long train ride from Germany to France and back again. Director Carol Reed never denied that his inspiration for Night Train was Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes (both films were written by Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat). The homage was solidified by the presence in Night Train of two carryovers from the Hitchcock film: those ardent British cricket fans Charters and Caldicott (Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne). Night Train was liberally adapted from the Gordon Wellesley novel Report on a Fugitive.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/06/2016
UPC:	0715515185516
Original Release:	1940
Rating:	NR
Source:	Criterion Collection
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[B&W]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:35:00
Sales rank:	11,032

Special Features

Conversation from 2010 between film scholars Peter Evans and Bruce Babington about director Carol Reed, screenwriters Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, and the social and political climate in which Night Train to Munich was made

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Margaret Lockwood	Anna Bomasch
Rex Harrison	Gus Bennett
Paul von Hernreid	Karl Marsen
Basil Radford	Charters
James Harcourt	Axel Bomasch
Naunton Wayne	Caldicott
Felix Aylmer	Dr. Fredericks
Wyndham Goldie	Dryton
Roland Culver	Roberts
Eliot Makeham	Schwab
Raymond Huntley	Kampenfeldt
Austin Trevor	Capt. Prada
Keneth Kent	Controller,Controller
C.V. France	Adm. Hassinger
Frederick Valk	Gestapo Officer
Morland Graham	Attendant
Wally Patch	Pier Fisherman
Albert Lieven	Concentration Camp Officer
David Horne	Czech Armament Co. Official
Ian Fleming	Brit. Intelligence Official
John Wengraf	Concentration Camp Doctor
Billy Russell	Actor,Actor
Irene Handl	Station Master (uncredited)
Pardoe Woodman	Minor Role (uncredited)
Edward Baxter	Minor Role (uncredited)
John Roberts	Actor,Minor Role (uncredited)
G.H. Mulcaster	Minor Role (uncredited)
Wilfrid Walter	Official at Prague Steel Works (uncredited)
Jane Cobb	Minor Role (uncredited)
Charles Oliver	SS Officer at Concentration Camp (uncredited)
Torin Thatcher	Minor Role (uncredited)
Maurice Ostrer	Actor
Winifred Oughton	Minor Role (uncredited)
Pat Williams	Actor

Technical Credits

Carol Reed	Director
Edward Black	Producer

Editorial Reviews

Time has dampened the impact of Night Train to Munich, not because its World War II setting dates it but because the conventions on display have become more commonplace in thrillers through the years. Even so, Munich manages to be more than sufficiently gripping to hold an audience's interest, and the plotting is intricate enough to keep the viewer involved. There are a number of elements in the screenplay that stand out, not the least of which is the sequence that introduces Rex Harrison, and the entire climactic escape is well handled by director Carol Reed, who provides excitement through subtlety. There are also, unfortunately, too many echoes of Hitchcock and The Lady Vanishes, which tend to work against the film's ultimate effectiveness. Still, these are offset by such pleasures as Harrison's skillful performance. He's delightful in the early sequences, using his effortless arrogance to good effect, and quite commanding in the second half. It's true that his German accent is a bit bizarre, but that's a minor quibble with an otherwise excellent performance. Margaret Lockwood is also quite good, albeit in a role that she could probably have performed in her sleep, so similar is it to others on her resumé. And Paul Henreid's nicely underplayed Nazi is memorable. Even if Munich is at times overly familiar, it's still engaging.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler