Strangers on a Train………..Hitchcock’s best film?

One of the best Hitchcock films ever made. Just might be.  The master’s cut of this 101-minute noir wastes not a second as he turns it into a top-notch film that can hold its own with any flick of the 1950s.

We have a black-and-white here that gets you involved quickly on the train, setting in motion the particulars of the first murder. Walker, as a gay psychopath who wants his parents dead, makes an unwanted deal with a tennis star (Granger) whose wife is pregnant with another man’s child. And he needs to get a divorce from the unfaithful wife. She is not willing, so he will, in time, have reason for her to exit his life. In each preceding scene, Granger is full of genuine emotion. Walker’s performance, his best, is chilling. Remember that Robert Walker and Farley Granger are as solid playing against their personal sexual nature. Granger, gay, plays straight with ease, and Walker shines as gay, stealing his scenes with some of his best acting ever. Hitchcock uses subtle nuances with Walker’s gay character, and he should have won Best Actor at the Oscars in 1951. A most overlooked film, Hitchcock’s direction is as good as any flick he ever made, and I would say, overall, this is a better film than Psycho, ten or so years later. Critics have pointed out specific scenes where Hitchcock shows his top-tier skills in filming a truly great film.