Movie Type: Police Detective Film, Post-Noir (Modern Noir)
Themes: Perfect Crime, Train Rides, Woman In Jeopardy
Main Cast: Yves Montand, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Pierre Mondy, Simone Signoret, Catherine Allegret, Jacques Perrin
Release Year: 1965
Country: FR
Run Time: 90 minutes
Plot
The first film directed by Costa-Gavras, The Sleeping Car Murders was based on a novel by Sebastien Japrisot. During a Marseilles-to-Paris overnight train trip, a girl is found dead in a sleeping car. As Paris detective Yves Montand steps up his investigation, more and more passengers turn up murdered. The unlikely climax is the only sore point of this otherwise well-wrought mystery. Bereft of the politicizing of Costa-Gavras' later works, The Sleeping Car Murders exhibits the director's fondness for American "film noir" thrillers. The film first hit Parisian movie screens under the title Compartiment Tueurs. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
The Sleeping Car Murders is a taut, gripping thriller that, until the end, makes no missteps along the way. Sheer entertainment, Murders will come as something of a surprise to fans of director Costa-Gavras, for none of the helmer's famed political concerns are to be found in this straight-ahead murder mystery. Instead, it's a beautiful cat-and-mouse game, with the killer constantly one step ahead of the police, with deadly results. Costa-Gavras has rarely been better, with a tight rein on the action at all times, but finding plenty of moments that allow the actors to shine and the characters to add a bit of depth. Things do falter at the end; things don't really add up the way we've been led to believe they will, and this is a disappointment. But until then, the chase has been tremendous fun, aided by Yves Montand in superlative form and exemplary work from Simone Signoret as well. Add in fine performances from Jean-Louis Trintignant, Jacques Perrin and Catherine Allegret (Signoret's daughter), and the result is a crime caper well worth watching. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Six people travel by train overnight from Marseilles to Paris. When the train arrives at its destination, one of the passengers, a girl, is found dead in a sleeping berth. The police led by Inspector Grazzi investigate the other five passengers, suspecting that one of them was responsible. However, as the investigation is stepped up, the other passengers start turning up dead. It is then up to the last remaining two to solve the case, before they become the next victims.
