The Girl on the Train (2016)

A divorcee becomes entangled in a missing persons investigation that promises to send shockwaves throughout her life.

Director:

Tate Taylor

Writers:

Erin Cressida Wilson (screenplay by), Paula Hawkins (based on the novel by)

Stars:

Emily Blunt, Haley Bennett, Rebecca Ferguson

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 4 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Emily Blunt	...	Rachel
Haley Bennett	...	Megan
Rebecca Ferguson	...	Anna
Justin Theroux	...	Tom
Luke Evans	...	Scott
Edgar Ramírez	...	Dr. Kamal Abdic (as Édgar Ramírez)
Laura Prepon	...	Cathy
Allison Janney	...	Detective Riley
Darren Goldstein	...	Man in the Suit
Lisa Kudrow	...	Martha
Cleta Elaine Ellington	...	Oyster Bar Woman (as Cleta E. Ellington)
Lana Young	...	Doctor
Rachel Christopher	...	Woman with Child
Fernando Medina	...	Pool Player
Gregory Morley	...	Officer Pete

Storyline

The Girl on the Train is the story of Rachel Watson's life post-divorce. Every day, she takes the train in to work in New York, and every day the train passes by her old house. The house she lived in with her husband, who still lives there, with his new wife and child. As she attempts to not focus on her pain, she starts watching a couple who live a few houses down -- Megan and Scott Hipwell. She creates a wonderful dream life for them in her head, about how they are a perfect happy family. And then one day, as the train passes, she sees something shocking, filling her with rage. The next day, she wakes up with a horrible hangover, various wounds and bruises, and no memory of the night before. She has only a feeling: something bad happened. Then come the TV reports: Megan Hipwell is missing. Rachel becomes invested in the case and trying to find out what happened to Megan, where she is, and what exactly she herself was up to that same night Megan went missing.

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Plot Keywords:

voyeurism | bludgeoned to death | infidelity | train | alcoholics anonymous | 

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Taglines:

Based on the thriller that shocked the world

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, sexual content, language and nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Page Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

7 October 2016 (USA)

Also Known As:

La chica del tren

Filming Locations:

Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$45,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$24,536,265, 9 October 2016, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$75,395,035

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$173,185,859

Company Credits

Production Co:

Amblin Partners,DreamWorks,Marc Platt Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Emily Blunt was at the beginning stage of pregnancy at the start of filming. She kept this from the cast and crew except for her friend, co-star Justin Theroux. Director Tate Taylor only found out of the case towards the end of filming when, filming a scene of Rachel showering, he noticed her bump and confronted her, asking if she'd withheld information he should have known. Blunt eventually had to tell him and he agreed to keep it secret. By the time filming ended in February 2016, she was in her fifth month of pregnancy.

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Goofs

Before Rachel and Tom fight, he puts a drink in front of her. Her hair fringe swaps from messy in the side angle, to perfectly brushed in the front angle.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Rachel: [narrating] My husband used to tell me I have an overactive imagination. I can't help it. I mean, haven't you ever been on a train and wondered about the lives of the people who live near the tracks? The lives you've never lived. These are things I want to know. Twice a day, I sit in the third car from the front where I have the perfect view into my favorite house: Number 15, Beckette Road.
[Rachel sees a woman on her back porch in the morning]
Rachel: I don't know when exactly, I suppose I ...
[...]

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Connections

Spoofed in Robot Chicken: We Don't See Much of That in 1940s America (2018)

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Soundtracks

Twisted
Written by London Thor and Travis Howard
Performed by London Thor
Courtesy of Dirt Heel Music

User Reviews

I liked it, even if mystery thriller is not my usual kind of genre

I don't usually watch mystery thriller dramas - I generally only go to big budget action movies. I knew next to nothing going in about what this movie was about, which is probably the best way to go into this movie (so in this review I'm not going to discuss the plot at all, just how I felt about the movie - it's better this way). I knew Emily Blunt was in the movie and that it was based on a novel and that's really about this it. Despite all this, I actually liked this movie.

Who hasn't observed strangers from a distance and imagined our own life stories for them? What if we got lost in our own imagined thoughts and turned them into a dangerous obsession? It's an interesting premise on which to base a story.

The movie kept me guessing; it wasn't predictable. It had me feeling disturbed, engaged, sad, and cringing at the unfolding events. I guess this is exactly what you'd want from a mystery thriller.