Transsiberian (Blu-ray)
Directed by: Brad Anderson
Written by: Brad Anderson and Will Conroy
Starring: Woody Harrelson, Emily Mortimer, Ben Kingsley, Eduardo Noriega, Kate Mara

The following is a reprint of my review of Transsiberian, originally posted here. Blu-ray specific details are included afterward.

When it comes to thrillers, the mantra “less is more” is quite often what separates the best from the rest. The most skillful directors of suspense know exactly how much they should show you, and how much to leave to your imagination. Alfred Hitchcock virtually perfected the technique, but now a new generation of filmmakers are picking up where he left off. Among them: Brad Anderson, director of the intense horror flick Session 9 and the psychological thriller The Machinist.

His new film Transsiberian clearly exhibits some Hitchcockian influences, not the least of which is the fact that it takes place aboard a train (a great place for mysterious encounters and claustrophobic environments). At the same time, Transsiberian also aligns itself with a recent wave of movies touching on American anxieties about travelling abroad — movies like Hostel, Turistas and The Ruins. I also don’t think it’s a spoiler to mention that the plot involves the Russian mafia, which seems to be all the rage right now thanks to Eastern Promises and Grand Theft Auto IV.

Woody Harrelson and Emily Mortimer star as an American couple who are riding the Transsiberian Express from Beijing to Moscow after participating in a missionary program in China. They meet up with another young couple who are sharing a room with them, and who, it turns out, have more than a few secrets to hide. One thing leads to another and they eventually find themselves caught in the middle of a drug smuggling scheme and murder.

The movie is beautifully shot by cinematographer Xavi Giménez (The Machinist, Intacto), and soaks up the barren landscapes and scenery in Russia. Although the story takes a long time to build momentum, the characters and dialogue are so well-constructed that the pacing is never an issue. I had my doubts about Woody Harrelson in a movie like this, but he plays the wide-eyed American tourist to a T (and also adds some comic relief while he’s at it). Meanwhile Emily Mortimer is absolutely riveting as his conflicted wife (the only movie I had previously seen her in is Lars and the Real Girl, and she was great there too). If the cast has a weak point it is probably Ben Kingsley and his half-hearted Russian accent, although even that is not overly distracting.

Transsiberian keeps you guessing all the way through with plenty of false leads and unexpected twists, all of which felt believable and real. Perhaps the only major complaint I can level is that after the gradual building of tension and suspense, the movie never really reaches a breaking point. It remains a little too low key, and concludes in a somewhat tame manner compared to some of the places where I thought it might go. But then, I suppose that’s one of the drawbacks of letting the audience’s imagination run wild, now isn’t it?

All said, Transsiberian is an exciting and effective thriller with great character work and more than a few surprises in store. It’s well worth seeking out if you can find it in theatres right now, but otherwise it will definitely make for a decent rental down the road. Brad Anderson is clearly a talented director and he’s done a lot of great stuff… I’m just waiting for him to knock his next one absolutely out of the park.

Blu-ray Details

After rewatching Transsiberian on Blu-ray, I decided to bump my original rating up by half a star. Not because the movie looks amazing in high-definition (which it does), and not because it comes packed with tons of extras (it doesn’t), but because I don’t think I gave the movie a fair shake the first time around. This is one of the best thrillers I’ve seen in a long time, gorgeously shot and carefully paced. Again, the subtlety of the movie is one of its strengths, and it’s easy to overlook some of Anderson’s skills as a filmmaker.

Getting into specifics about the extras included on the Blu-ray release, there is really only one: a behind-the-scenes making-of featurette. It’s a lot longer than I expected it to be (over half an hour), but the quality is inconsistent. It includes a lot of those fluffy cast interviews where they gush over the director, but it also has some on-set footage showing the train interiors that they built, the real exterior locations, and the green screen shots used for action sequences. Regardless, Transsiberian is a movie that is well worth checking out, and in my opinion, one of the overlooked gems of the year. Don’t miss it. — Sean

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