Susan Granger’s review of “Man on the Train” (Paramount Classics)
Patrice Leconte’s comic melodrama begins as Milan (Johnny Hallyday), a grizzled, mysterious man with piercing blue eyes, disembarks from the train in a small, deserted French town. While buying aspirin at a pharmacy, he meets hospitable, garrulous Manesquier (Jean Rochefort), a retired educator, who not only offers water to wash down his headache pills but also a room in his family chateau since the local hotel is closed for the season. As their wary relationship slowly develops, it becomes obvious that taciturn Milan intends to rob the provincial bank, a daring act that refined Manesquier had concocted for many years but only in his fantasies. Because beneath his veneer, Manesquier longs to be Wyatt Earp, while Milan is weary of the nomadic life. And Saturday, when Milan has decided to pull off his bank robbery, is the same day that Manesquier faces open-heart surgery. As the fateful day approaches, each man – the thief and the teacher – reveals unexpected quirks of character that define his destiny. For those not into French culture, Johnny Hallyday is a legendary pop icon (a photo of him in his youth drops out of Milan’s jacket pocket in a kind of homage), while Jean Rochefort is a veteran actor and director Patrice Leconte (“The Girl on the Bridge”) is renown for his poignant, emotionally evocative film-making. This time, Leconte, along with writer Claude Klotz, has created a cerebral Gallic version of the buddy movie, relying on the solemn, modest characters to propel the plot. On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Man on the Train” is a surreal, ambiguous 8. Winner of the Best Picture Audience Award at the Venice Film Festival, along with the Best Actor Audience Award, it’s in French with English subtitles.
