The Man on the Train
United States theatrical poster
Directed byPatrice Leconte
Written byClaude Klotz
Produced byPhilippe Carcassonne
StarringJean Rochefort
Johnny Hallyday
CinematographyJean-Marie Dreujou
Edited byJoëlle Hache
Music byPascal Estève
Distributed byParamount Classics (USA)
Release dates
  • 2 September 2002 (2002-09-02) (Venice)
  • 9 October 2002 (2002-10-09) (France)
Running time
90 minutes
CountryFrance
LanguageFrench
Budget€5 million
Box office$7,585,989[1]

The Man on the Train (French: L'homme du train), called Man on the Train in the USA, is a 2002 French drama film directed by Patrice Leconte that stars Jean Rochefort and Johnny Hallyday.

Plot

In a little French town, a rough-looking man named Milan arrives alone by train. Suffering a headache, he goes into the pharmacy for aspirin and there meets Manesquier, a cultured bachelor who lives in a large house on his own. As the only hotel has closed, Manesquier offers to put the stranger up for the night. While he is delighted to talk about his life and interests, the taciturn Milan does not say who he is or why he is there. The reason, it is revealed, is because he will link up with three other criminals and rob the town bank.

Over the next few days the two very different men start bonding, with Milan introduced to music and poetry and the aesthete Manesquier learning to be tough with women and other men. On the Saturday each is to meet his fate: Manesquier will undergo triple bypass surgery while Milan will join his fellow-criminals in holding up the bank. The robbery is a failure, as the police have been tipped off and Milan is shot down. The operation is also a failure; as Manesquier dies on the table.

In a brief coda, each dead man returns to life and their improbable friendship resumes.

Cast

Production

The film was shot in France at Annonay.

Release

Paramount Classics acquired the United States distribution rights of this film and gave it a limited US theatrical release on May 9, 2003 to a total of 85 theaters; this film went on to gross $2,542,020 in United States theaters,[1] which is a solid result for a non-English language film.[2] Paramount Classics was ecstatic with this film's performance in the United States market.[3]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 92% of 116 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.5/10. The website's consensus reads: "A lovely, contemplative character study with two wonderful performances at its center."[4] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 75 out of 100, based on 36 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[5]

Accolades

The film won the audience awards at the Venice Film Festival for "Best Film" and "Best Actor" (Jean Rochefort) in 2002.

English-language remake

In 2011, an English-language remake of this film was released, starring Donald Sutherland as the professor and Larry Mullen, Jr. as the thief.

References

  1. 1 2 The Man on the Train at Box Office Mojo
  2. ↑ Eugene Hernandez. "Box Office Battles: A Look at 2003 for 25 Indie and Specialty Distributors". Archived from the original on 23 April 2007.
  3. ↑ Making the Grade, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 August 2004
  4. ↑ "The Man on the Train". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  5. ↑ "Man on the Train". Metacritic. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
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