‘I may be old-fashioned, but I thought murder was against the law...’
Historically, I’ve never been a massive fan of Hitchcock. I know this is sacrilegious for a supposed film enthusiast to admit, but it wasn’t until I saw Rear Window that I started to see the light. Since then Rope and The 39 Steps have helped me see the error of my ways and there is no denying that cinematic brilliance of Vertigo. Perhaps I’m ready to return to North by Northwest to give my great Hitchcock white whale another shot. In the meantime, sandwiched between Rope in 1948 and Rear Window in 1954 we have Strangers on a Train – perhaps Hitchcock’s most famous and enduring concept…
Tennis pro Guy Haines (Farley Granger) has a problem. His wife is expecting a child from another man and she is refusing to grant Guy a divorce. Bruno Antony (Robert Walker) has many problems. Most pertinent of which is his toxic relationship with his overbearing father. When the two men meet on a train, Bruno suggests they solve each other’s problems by ‘swapping murders’. Bruno is to murder Guy’s cheating wife whilst Guy is to do the same to Bruno’s father. Guy laughs this ridiculous premise off but is forced to face reality when Bruno takes matters into his own hands.
A simple but devilishly wonderful concept then and one that is executed beautifully by Hitchcock and his cast. The whole premise hinges on whether Walker can convincingly play Bruno as a sadistic murderer and, perhaps worryingly, he absolutely can. Bruno is one of Hitchcock’s most vile creations, more so than even Psycho’s Norman Bates, and it is he who elevates this movie beyond being a mere concept.
Elsewhere, Granger is also excellent as the beleaguered protagonist and the twisted relationship between the two ensures that Strangers on a Train has rightly gone down in cinematic history as one of Hitchcock’s finest hours.
This is a film giddily exhilarated by its own ingenious concept. It is also a masterpiece that is worth the admission fee for the incredible final scene alone. The master of suspense does it again.