Transsiberian (2008)

Elevator Pitch

An American couple decide to travel from Vladivostock to Moscow by the Transsiberian express and on the train they are joined by a young couple, a Spaniard and an American. In snowy Russia the husband is accidentally left at a station , and at the next one the wife, and the couple, decide to wait for him to arrive the following day. Slightly against her better judgement she takes at trip with Carlos, the Spaniard initiating a series of events which she finds impossible to explain, and when her husband catches up, with a narcotics detective in tow, things can only get worse.

Content

The train makes its way towards Moscow on a single line in a snowy landscape. The passengers relax, eat and attempt domestic functions in its difficult environment. The stations are bleak and the hostels where they stay are primitive. Carlos and Jessie, the wife, take a trip into the countryside. She takes photographs. There is a constant feeling of tension and even when the husband, Roy catches up, things do not get better. There is a bit of male nudity, some non revelatory sex and some violence, including torture in some versions of the movie.

A View

I had never heard of this film and so started watching it with low expectations, but was quickly caught up, particularly by the spectacular scenes of the train trogging through the snow. And then we have the husband and wife who seem to be innocents abroad and as a consequence find themselves struggling in an increasingly threatening environment, the wife not always telling her husband the truth. Despite the fact that the critical response was extremely positive and that it was made on a moderate budget, it lost a lot of money, but it is well worth a view if you like a taut thriller.