Strangers on a Train (1951)
95%RT Audience Score: 92%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 1 Oscar
3 wins & 2 nominations total
A provocative premise and inventive set design lights the way for Hitchcock diabolically entertaining masterpiece.
Strangers on a Train is a classic Hitchcock thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat. The plot, taken from a Patricia Highsmith novel, is ingenious and the villain, played by Robert Walker, is memorably seductive. Hitchcock’s mastery of suspense is on full display, with several famous visual set pieces that will leave you breathless. And let’s not forget the iconic runaway carousel climax, which has a subtext that you’d be absolutely blind to ignore. This film may be from 1951, but it still holds up today as a must-see for any fan of the genre. So hop on board and enjoy the ride!
Production Company(ies)
Warner Bros.,
Distributor
Warner Bros. Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Rowland V. Lee Ranch – Fallbrook Avenue, Canoga Park, Los Angeles, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG for some violence and tension
Year of Release
1951
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Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
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Runtime:1h 41m
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Language(s):English, French
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jun 30, 1951 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 6, 1998
Genre(s)
Mystery & thriller
Keyword(s)
Worldwide gross: $28,091
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $365,302
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,814
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 39,837
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $1,200,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $15,605,066
Production budget ranking: 1,498
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $8,403,328
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$23,643,092
ROI to date (est.): -98%
ROI ranking: 2,013
Robert Walker – Bruno Anthony
Farley Granger – Guy Haines
Ruth Roman – Anne Morton
Leo G. Carroll – Sen. Morton
Patricia Hitchcock – Barbara Morton
Marion Lorne – Mrs. Anthony
Alfred Hitchcock – Producer/Director
Whitfield
Director(s)
Alfred Hitchcock
Writer(s)
Whitfield Cook, Patricia Highsmith, Czenzi Ormonde
Producer(s)
Alfred Hitchcock
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 1 Oscar
3 wins & 2 nominations total
Academy Awards
All Critics (52) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (51) | Rotten (1)
The upshot is a perfect Alfred Hitchcock thriller…with a ingenious plot taken from a Patricia Highsmith novel and a memorably seductive villain.
November 2, 2018
Jake Wilson
The Age (Australia)
TOP CRITIC
Strangers on a Train is an admirable demonstration of Alfred Hitchcock’s virtuosity in the area of suspense dramas.
June 30, 2017
THR Staff
Hollywood Reporter
TOP CRITIC
Perhaps Strangers on a Train still hasn’t yielded all its secrets.
February 4, 2008
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
To ignore the subtext during the runaway carousel climax is to be absolutely blind.
September 6, 2004 | Rating: 3.5/4
Eric Henderson
Slant Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Hitchcock was above all the master of great visual set pieces, and there are several famous sequences in Strangers on a Train.
January 15, 2004 | Rating: 4/4
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
TOP CRITIC
November 13, 2003 | Rating: 5/5
Nell Minow
Movie Mom
TOP CRITIC
I know no other recent film, in fact, which better conveys the condition of modern man, who must escape his fate without the help of the gods.
September 1, 2021
Jean-Luc Godard
Cahiers du Cinéma
All this is quite incredible, but it is not lacking in excitement at any time.
August 20, 2021
Jay Carmody
Washington Star
Showcases the technical prowess and brilliant editing that are among the hallmarks of Hitchcock’s work.
May 11, 2021 | Rating: 7/10
Dean Lamanna
Film Threat
It’s the kind of crime setup that is unable to face scrutiny by even slightly more modern detective practices – and, by extension, modern audiences.
August 23, 2020 | Rating: 7/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
Strangers on a Train (1951) was director Alfred Hitchcock’s suspenseful, noirish black and white thriller about two train passengers: tennis pro Guy Haines (Farley Granger) and psychopathic dandy Bruno Antony (Robert Walker)…
September 29, 2019 | Rating: A+
Tim Dirks
Filmsite
…a solid premise that’s employed to consistently captivating effect by Alfred Hitchock…
August 20, 2019 | Rating: 3.5/4
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews…
Plot
Bruno Antony thinks he has the perfect plot to rid himself of his hated father, and when he meets tennis player Guy Haines on a train he thinks he’s found the partner he needs to pull it off. His plan is relatively simple: Two strangers each agree to kill someone the other person wants gone. For example, Guy could kill his father and he could get rid of Guy’s wife Miriam, freeing him to marry Anne Morton, the beautiful daughter of a U.S. Senator. Guy dismisses it all out of hand, but Bruno goes ahead with his half of the “bargain” and disposes of Miriam. When Guy balks, Bruno makes it clear that he will plant evidence to implicate Guy in her murder if he doesn’t get rid of his father. Guy had also made some unfortunate statements about Miriam after she had refused to divorce him. It all leads the police to believe Guy is responsible for the murder, forcing him to deal with Bruno’s mad ravings.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Robert Walker’s performance as the sociopathic Bruno Anthony is “memorably seductive.”
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