 Girl on the Train (2016) Cast: Emily Blunt, Haley Bennett, Rebecca Ferguson, Justin Theroux, Luke Evans, Lisa Kudrow Directed by Tate Taylor Screenplay by Erin Cressida Wilson Music by Danny Elfman Cinematography by Charlotte Christensen Based on Novel by Paula Hawkins Running time: 1 hour, 52 minutes Rated R for violence, sexual content, language and nudity. I don't know how to class this one and even Ms Blunt could not save it, well not completely, it reminds you of a art-house film in many ways but it actually is very much not a art-house film. As film is arguably the artistic medium most conducive to conveying sustained voyeurism, this particular story held a great deal of potential. While remaining true to the book in many ways the setting has been shifted from greater London to the New York City suburbs, the milieu is much more upscale than in the book and the title character in the film is both more physically attractive and less ironic than on the written page. The puzzle of how the various personal and narrative pieces will eventually fit together exerts a smidgen of interest to pull you in at times, especially in the beginning but it's very hard to follow until you are nearing the end, mostly multiple story lines running in many directions all at once and all seemingly unconnected even though they clearly are connected, makes for slow viewing much of the time. The real problem is virtually everyone who populates this cryptic tale of would-be-but-not-really friends are so dour and lacking dimension as to invite no curiosity about them. Now all of this wouldn't matter quite so much if the central mystery had been more compelling and interesting. |
 A few nice character performances lurk around the edges, including those by Allison Janney as an approachable cop; Laura Prepon, given too little screen time as Rachel's (Emily Blunt) indulgent landlady; and especially Lisa Kudrow, who brings exceptional verve to a nothing role. The lone creative element to command interest here is Elfman's score, which inspires mood and feeling rather than lulling you with simple melodies or any of his trademark gambits from the Tim Burton collaborations. He almost makes the film seem good from time to time to be honest. It has a few borderline soft-core porn scenes, some graphic violence here and there but other than that it's kind of boring most of the time. The end while cleverly done I guess even though by then it is quite obvious, leaves you without joy as you are too exhausted from the trip to really appreciate it. I didn't hate it but I didn't really like it that much either, I give them a E for Effort but a F for Execution... |
The Girl on the Train, Trailer
