Stranger on a Train.

Again- an episode of NCIS made me desperate to see this film. Hitchcock liked murder and suspense but it is hard to put a value on his movies. I have seen one that wasn't as good as the others and everything else that I have seen has been very good and very enjoyable.

Strangers on a train is about two guys that meet on a train. One guy has this idea to create a perfect murder where they each perform each others murders but the other guy never had any intention of carrying out his side of it- in fact, he wasn't even convince that the man was serious. Of course, this tennis players wife is murdered by the stranger on the train and he is free to marry the woman that he was in love with. The stranger harasses him and in the end is arrested for murder.

Hitchcock's film is a spark of genius. The idea to take something as simple as a train in which to base an entire plot and film around should not be underestimated. Everything about the plan in the film would have been flawless if the tennis player had been willing to commit the other murder.
The black and white film takes away the colour and design that would have really sparked it to life but even without it- sit back and let your own mind fill in the colours and the patterns and you will have something quite wonderful and truly extraordinary. There is nothing complicated about this film. There is, of course, another cut to this version that I believe is slightly more complicated but for whatever reason was not shown when the film was aired and I am very glad that they didn't. What makes this film so wonderful is that it was a simple idea that was held up by a simple character with potentially a complicated psychological background and a young man that wanted to get away from his wife who was apparently expecting his child.

This film shows that there is more to Hitchcock than Psycho. People that really know and appreciate film was also suggest Rear Window and North by Northwest but every Hitchcock film that I have watched has been different in some way and that has made me very happy. I wished that I owned more of his films so that I could compare the James Stewart, Grace Kelly and Carey Grant films with each to try and ascertain if any of his film could be considered the same plot or even be put in the same incontestable category.