Train of Life

1998 1h 43m FR

👍

7.3

SOLID

★7.3TMDB · 306

DramaComedyWar

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In 1941, the inhabitants of a small Jewish village in Central Europe organize a fake deportation train so that they can escape the Nazis and flee to Palestine.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Lionel Abelanski
Shlomo
Rufus
Mordechai
Clément Harari
Rabbi
Agathe de La Fontaine
Esther
Michel Muller
Yossi
Johan Leysen
Schmecht
Bruno Abraham-Kremer
Yankele
Gad Elmaleh
Manzatou

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Radu Mihăileanu
Writers: Radu Mihăileanu
Languages: German, French
Countries: Belgium, Israel, Netherlands, Romania, France

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

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $3M — a 21.4× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

28 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: German, French.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 5 countries: Belgium, Israel, Netherlands, Romania, France.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Radu Mihăileanu, shot by Giorgos Arvanitis. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Radu Mihăileanu directs. Giorgos Arvanitis behind the camera. Goran Bregović scores. Monique Rysselinck cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in Belgium, Israel, Netherlands, Romania, France. Dialogue in German, French.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Grossed $3M — a 21.4× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
328 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
4Dialogue crosses 2 languages: German, French.
5International production across 5 countries: Belgium, Israel, Netherlands, Romania, France.
6Directed by Radu Mihăileanu, shot by Giorgos Arvanitis. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Original score by Goran Bregović. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
8Editor Monique Rysselinck shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
9Lionel Abelanski and Rufus and Clément Harari carry the top of the cast.
10IMDB entry: tt0170705 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 12 themes, including "nazi", "concentration camp", "holocaust (shoah)", "village".