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 & 11 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:

infidelity | train | alcoholics anonymous | alcoholic | voyeurism | 

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Taglines:

What you can see can hurt you.

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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 India

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

7 October 2016 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Girl on the Train

Filming Locations:

Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$45,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$24,536,265, 9 October 2016

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

Chris Evans was attached to play Tom Watson, but scheduling conflicts with Marc Webb's Gifted (2017) forced him to drop out. Justin Theroux soon replaced him.

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Goofs

When Anna is lying on the bed and Megan hands her the baby, the baby's mouth is empty. In the next shot, taken from the other side of the bed, the baby now has a dummy attached to a cord in its mouth. But in the following shot, taken from the original shooting position, the dummy and cord are missing.

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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

Remade as Mira (2020)

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Soundtracks

Happy Birthday
(uncredited)
Written by Mildred J. Hill and Patty S. Hill
Performed by Haley Bennett

User Reviews

Well done, complex mystery

Well, I enjoyed this movie to the point I would watch it again to catch some of the nuances you miss during first viewing. The story is a bit complicated with several couples in overlapping relationships, but that makes it interesting. The actors are all good with real responses to the surprise events. Unveiling the main character's, Rachel, story in drunken snippets adds to the tension. Some other reviewers complain about plot points that don't make sense but, in some cases, it's because the reviewer did not understand the plot and the inter-relationships of the characters. Special credit to Emily Blunt and Haley Bennet for portraying the angst in their personal situations.