Lady on a Train

"Deanna... on a Man (Oh! Man) Hunt!"

1945 1h 34m EN

👍

6.6

SOLID

★6.6TMDB · 54

ComedyCrimeMysteryRomanceThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

While watching from her train window, Nikki Collins witnesses a murder in a nearby building. When she alerts the police, they think she has read one too many mystery novels. She then enlists a popular mystery writer to help her solve the crime on her own, but her sleuthing attracts the attentions of suitors and killers.

“Deanna... on a Man (Oh! Man) Hunt!”

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Cast

Deanna Durbin
Nikki Collins / Margo Martin
Ralph Bellamy
Jonathan Waring
David Bruce
Wayne Morgan
George Coulouris
Mr. Saunders, Circus Club Manager
Allen Jenkins
Danny (Waring chauffeur)
Dan Duryea
Arnold Waring
Edward Everett Horton
Mr. Haskell
Patricia Morison
Joyce Willams, Morgan's Girl

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Charles David
Writers: Leslie Charteris, Edmund Beloin, Robert O'Brien
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

81 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Charles David, shot by Elwood Bredell. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Miklós Rózsa. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Ted J. Kent shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Deanna Durbin and Ralph Bellamy and David Bruce carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Deanna... on a Man (Oh! Man) Hunt!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0037859 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 54 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Charles David directs. Elwood Bredell behind the camera. Miklós Rózsa scores. Ted J. Kent cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

181 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Charles David, shot by Elwood Bredell. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Miklós Rózsa. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Ted J. Kent shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Deanna Durbin and Ralph Bellamy and David Bruce carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "Deanna... on a Man (Oh! Man) Hunt!".
7IMDB entry: tt0037859 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 54 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
9Classified under 9 themes, including "film noir", "murder", "inheritance", "train".

The technical file

Cinematography: Elwood Bredell
Original score: Miklós Rózsa
Editing: Ted J. Kent
Costume design: Howard Greer
Runtime: 94 min · 1h 34m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Lady on a Train (1945)

Also by

Charles David

River Gang
1945 · ★ 9.0

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2013-12-29
★ 7.5/10
Genre blender of considerable worth. Lady on a Train is directed by Charles David and adapted to screenplay by Edmund Beloin and Robert O’Brien from a Leslie Charteris story. It stars Deanna Durbin, Ralph Bellamy, David Bruce, George Coulouris, Allen Jenkins, Dan Duryea and Edward Everett Horton. Music is by Miklos Rozsa and cinematography by Woody Bredell. Part murder mystery, part film noir, part comedy and part musical! And it’s a Christmas movie as well! Lady on a Train has a lot going on for sure. It’s a fun packed little movie that gives Durbin full licence to show her various talents before she retired out of the limelight three years later. In main essence it’s the murder mystery aspect that drives the picture forward. Durbin plays Nikki Collins, a spunky young woman who loves reading detective mysteries, so when she witnesses a murder being committed from her train window seat, she’s obviously all of a tingle. However, convincing the authorities of what she saw proves to be difficult and she decides to take up the case herself. Pretty soon she is up to her neck in intrigue and life threatening peril. Things start getting twisty once Durbin meets the victim’s bizarre family, a veritable roll call of miserablists and shifty shysters. Aided by mystery writer Wayne Morgan (Bruce), Nikki has to run the gamut of bluffing and boldness to stay one step ahead of the game, including imitating a chanteuse singer. This allows Durbin to the chance to warble three songs, with a version of “Silent Night” beautifully tender and a sensuous and sultry rendition of “Gimme a Little Kiss, Will Yah, Huh?” Having us in the palm of her hand. It builds nicely to a darkly tinged last third, where Bredell’s noirish photography comes into its own and the resolution of the tale is most satisfactory. Good laughs, good suspense and good songs, well worth a viewing. Story was filmed as a straight British thriller in 1940 titled A Window in London, with Michael Redgrave starring. 7/10

Production companies