NightTrainMurders

Night Train Murders (1976)

A pair of teenage girls hop a train in Berlin to head south to Italy for the Christmas holiday. Along the way they have the misfortune of running into a couple of creeps that are up to no good. Now this might not of amounted to anything if they didn’t run into a nasty, violent, oversexed woman that pushes the situation down a dangerous path. Because of her things get out of hand and the girls die. When the three get off at the girl’s stop (they were using the girls tickets) they end up with one of the dead girl’s family. When Dad figures out what happens there is hell to pay.

This is another killer release from Blue Underground on Blu-Ray (they have a DVD of it as well). While the plot is lifted from Last House on the Left (which itself borrowed heavily) it varies enough to make this one interesting. The idea of the killers randomly meeting on the train and the fact that the strongest personality that causes it to happen is a woman was a nice twist. Once the plot gets going the story happens very quickly and is rather nasty. It isn’t as explicit as Last House, but it implies enough to make it riveting. It does a wonderful job making me really hate the murderers and made the end all that much better. Well sort of anyway.

Spoilers ahead: The killers are so detestable that when the woman and ringleader walks away scot free at the end I was angry at the flick. I mean she really should have had it coming to her. And the movie sets up the audience with the girl’s father being a doctor and having a treatment room at his house. I wanted to see him tear up these animals. We get on guy beaten to death, but the other is a shotgun. Bummer. I make no apologies for being this bloodthirsty when I watch a movie like Night Train Murders.

There are four deaths in the movie with the two girls and two punks dying. None of the kills are graphic and one is clearly a dummy being tossed down a hill. Other then a nice bit with an IV pole and a shot of one of the girls afterwards that was rather disturbing there isn’t much to talk about. At least as far as the kilIs go. Night Train Murders excels in other ways. The attacks on the girls are brutal without showing all that much (again except for one after the event shot). But they are staged in such a way that the audience is allowed to fill in the blanks. When a movie does this right it is far worse then what they could ever show on screen. All in all I was rather disturbed by what I watched, which means mission accomplished.

For this review I watched the new Blue Underground Blu-Ray of Night Train Murders. There is one nice extra called Riding the Night Train. It is an interview with co-writer and director Aldo Lado. Other then some trailers and radio spots that is about what you get. Well other then a great transfer that is. This movie looks great in high definition and Blue Underground brings yet another “grimy” classic to your 1080p television.

This is a must by for exploitation fans. If you have seen it before then you will love how it looks. If you haven’t then you are in for a good time. Well I sort of feel bad about saying this movie is a good time, but it is entertaining. Nope that sounds wrong too. Damn it just check it out.

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer