I watched the trailer and it was great. Comments like “I’ve heard about this book, which was number one bestseller, – can’t wait to see this film”, “I love Emily Blunt, this definitely is a must see!” just made me more curious to see it.
If you think any of those high spoken ‘expectations’ can be related to ‘The girl on the train’ film, may be one big disappointment. I admit that trailer did catch my attention, hence why I was looking forward to see it and to be overwhelmed by a an interesting storyline, one of my favourite type of films – psychological thrillers.
I do like detective stories, and films that keep you excited till the very end when the truth is revealed. That’s what I expected from this story. However, it didn’t excite me. It rather made me feel extremely sorry for heroine Rachel (Emily Blunt) who probably had the saddest and most pathetic life wasted away by drinking and getting herself into dramas with her ex-husband and his new wife a young lover.
The story entwines between 5 characters, and none of these characters have a good life. So, basically you don’t take anything from this movie except depression, sadness and sorrow. Emily Blunt is a brilliant actress, and her character Rachel managed to get under my skin barely handling her case.
If you’ve read the book, a big shout out to you. That’s impressive, you managed enough of your precious time to read the number one 2015 New York Times bestseller. The book was number one for months, and according to all bestseller-lovers, it’s got to be read. My advice to those who haven’t touched this book yet, don’t worry, you won’t miss out on much. You’ll probably gain more from not having this piece of lack lustre literature on your bookshelf.
‘The girl on the train’ is a typical American drama and not so much of a thriller. It gets five people involved into a complicated, psychological criminal-horror story but that’s about it. The easiest way to describe it would be, if you think of all the myriad of possible sin and the worst life situations you can think of – alcoholism, cheating, betrayal, abusive husband, depressed teenager, revenge, killer, blackouts put them into a movie, I think you pretty much get the idea where this film is headed. Director Tate Taylor managed to capture all of those good bits but perhaps, he’d be better sticking to his acting career.
Recently, I can’t recall any films that emphasise drama and depression so excessively. At the end of the screening I had a very puzzled look, what just happened? I think enough has been said. I’ll stop there and let you decide whether or not you like it.
Don’t have high expectations, if you’ve read the book. If you haven’t read it, take it easy and try to forget about what you’ve seen once you leave the cinema. For me, it didn’t quite hit the mark.
