Karry Best movie of this year hands down!

Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

Portia Hilton Blistering performances.

Fatma Suarez The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

dromasca Destiny decided that Jean Rochefort and Johnny Hallyday, the two wonderful lead actors of "L'homme du train" ("Man on the Train") died a couple of months apart, at the end of 2017. Destiny or coincidence? This question is actually one of the key topics of this wonderful film directed by Patrice Leconte and made in 2002, 15 years before the disappearance of these two sacred monsters of French cinema (and music in the case of Johnny Hallyday).This is the story of two men who meet by chance. Monsieur Manesquier (Jean Rochefort) is a retired teacher of French literature who lives an old bachelor life in the bourgeois house where he was born and where he is supposed to die. Milan (Johnny Hallyday) is a bank robber who came to the small town to prepare the robbery of the local bank. One talks a lot, the other is a man of few words. We'll get to know much about the previous life of the first, and almost nothing about the second who is a mysterious gangster figure on the line of characters like the one in Jean-Pierre Melville's "Le Samouraï". They apparently have not too much in common, but they will discover soon not only consistent affinities, but also something more surprising: each of them yearn to the way of life of the other."L'homme du train" is flawlessly executed, starting with the well written script which builds the two characters from a well dosed mix of dialogs and silences, the set that recreates the small town house full of memories from other times, and the superb acting of the two actors. Patrice Leconte also plays with cinematographic quotes like the Western-like beginning which brings the stranger to the remote small town to the gardener with the scythe scene reminding Ingmar Bergman. There is a lot of charm in the relationship between the two men who get gradually to know each other, in the atmosphere that surrounds them with signs of the unexpected convergence of their fates. "L'homme du train" is a beautiful movie in the best tradition of the French minimalism combined with 'film noir'. A gem that brings back to our attention that two great actors that the French cinema recently lost in one of the best films in their respective careers.

jimmydavis-650-769174 I immensely enjoyed this film, albeit for somewhat shameful reasons! It is rather clichéd, has many inconsistencies and unlikely plot devices, however it is also knowing, charming and unapologetically French. Whilst it will not become one of my favoured films as the characters are a little weak and as i've said the story is rather sentimental I got a great deal of pleasure watching it.This is just the sort of drama American studios seem unable to make and this is why this slender little film punches so far above it's weight. Undoubtedly 'non actor' Hallyday would run rings around a great many of Hollywood's sons. The beginning and end of the film were the highlights, although I feel better use could have been made of the train and it's journey as a vehicle for the themes explored.

lastliberal Pascal Estève's music makes this film feel like a Western. Small French city, no movement in the streets, and two men meet.Johnny Hallyday, considered the French Elvis, plays Milan, a bank robber, who is bored with his life.Jean Rochefort, nominated for six Césars and winning two (Let Joy Reign Supreme and The Crab-Drum) plays Monsieur Manesquier, a retired French teacher who is thoroughly bored with his life.As the two men converse (mostly Manesquier), it is apparent that they may be suited for each other's lives.As they plan and ponder, one ends up in the hospital and the other does the job. The ending was brilliant, whether real or imagined.Patrice Leconte (Girl on the Bridge, Monsieur Hire, The Hairdresser's Husband, My Best Friend) directs brilliantly as he always does. I have never been disappointed in any of his films.

mmunier I'm French living in Sydney Australia, with a philipino friend who loves french movies. So we went to see the man from the train about a year ago. Today it was on "SBS" our "international" TV channel which has not put commercials through screening yet (else has them between programs for a couple of years now) Sorry about this but I'm sure you'd read many other comments to know what it's about but I wanted to set a different mood for my own) I was thrilled when I saw the TV program and for 2 reasons. 1) I was a big fan of J Hallidays (and so watched the film with one of his first album cover standing up in front of me,displaying a close up of his face on it) 2)I enjoyed it very much when I saw it on the big screen so was looking forward to see it again. I read very well written comments, so too aware of my writing skill level, would feel rather insulting to try to write one myself because these comments (especially the most favourable ones did express very much my own feelings about this work far better than I could do myself) ***Spoiler*** One thing puzzled me though was the tipping of the robbery, no comments seemed to mention or question the origin of it. And the only person who might have been able to be responsible for it seemed to be the most unlikely person to do it! I'd like to hear others idea of it. **End of Spoiler**I enjoyed the ending with the extra thought unlike some who found it unnecessary or out of place, and actually remembered it with a more mysterious air about it! I'm not too Europeen VS American generalist and prefer to take each work to its own value. I certainly would recommend it to my friends even those who hate subtitles.