Strangers on a Train

Cameo Hitchcock — the man with the bass, which in the beginning of the film gets on the train as soon as it goes guy.

The rights to the novel by Patricia Hismedical bought anonymously, so the price is not soared. This purchase cost him $ 7,500.

Raymond Chandler is considered a major screenwriter of the film and in the credits there is a first, although most of the work was made by the second writer, Chance the Ormond.

Alfred Hitchcock originally wanted William Holden had played guy Haines.

Scene station in Metcalfe was filmed at the former train station of new haven (Danbury, CT). There is now a railway Museum, Danbury.

"Strangers on a train" — the last completed film by Robert Walker who died eight months after filming.

The character Bruno is named in honor of Bruno Richard Hauptmann, the alleged kidnapper and murderer, son of the legendary pilot Charles Lindbergh.

In the film version, which was shown in Germany, not enough 5 minutes (ribbon cut the most violent scenes). Later, they were added for display on the TV, but was accompanied by subtitles only, while the rest of the film were duplicated.

"Strangers on a train" became the debut for the 67-year-old Marion Lorne, she played the mother of Bruno. The film is the only notable role by Patricia Hitchcock, daughter of Alfred Hitchcock.

This film identified the location of the star Carol Burnett on the walk of Fame in Hollywood. In 1951, Carol worked as a Comptroller of tickets to the Warner theatre on Hollywood Boulevard, which at that time was "strangers on a train". Two people were late for the session, and Burnett, had already seen the film, said that this wonderful picture it is necessary to look from the beginning, the theatre Manager fired Carol. A few years later when Carol Burnett asked where she would like to put your star on the walk of Fame, Burnett chose a place right in front of the Warner theatre.

From the beginning it was planned that the role of the mentally ill Bruno Anthony get Robert Walker. When choosing the actor for this role Hitchcock was guided by the fact that Walker was just released from a psychiatric hospital. Six months after the end of the film the Walker exacerbated mental illness, and he died because of allergic reactions to medications.

As the operator was selected by Robert Berks — specialist in complex optical effects that can create in the frame the mood, which demanded the Director. The Director was pleased with his work and continue to work with Berks over the next 14 years. It is the Burkes managed to capture what Hitchcock wanted for the past 20 years of his film career, to reduce the murder reflected in the glasses of the victim.

The interiors of the film were shot in warneremi Studio, scene at the open air in Los Angeles (amusement Park), Washington, D.C. (Jefferson memorial), new York (Penn station) and Danbury (provincial station). In the summer of 1950 Hitchcock came to Queens to shoot full tribunes on matches of the Davis Cup. October 17, 1950, the crew departed on the East coast, where for 6 days the shooting took place at Penn station (in the movie it was issued for the capital station Union station) and in the small town of Denbury (who in the film became provincial Metkatom). By this time the lion's share of the script was ready.

Amusement Park according to the detailed instructions Hitchcock was built on a ranch of his colleagues Rowland V. Lee in Chatsworth. A real "Tunnel of love" managed to find in one of the city of Los Angeles, Canoga Park. The role of Miriam, the Director was forced to wear spectacles with powerful lenses, although it was a beautiful sight. It disoriented her during the filming. In one of the scenes shows that she feels the road, holding your hand over the furniture. The tennis match was shot on the courts of tennis club in suburban South Gate. In the frame of the opponent of Gaius portrayed Fred Reynolds, while Granger was opposed by his trainer Jack Cassingham. Other scenes were shot in Studio on a background of landscape scenery.

Hitchcock personally came up with for Bruno tie with a pattern of lobsters with a clenched claws, which seemed to be a gives Bruno the Boston Strangler.

To promote the new film Hitchcock, as usual, posed for photographers in unusual positions. One promotory he is shown inserting the letter L in the word strangers ("strangers") in the title of the film. The pun that turns the word stranglers ("Stranglers"). On another photo he puts his arms about the neck of his daughter Patricia (who played Barbara). In one of the press releases claimed that Hitchcock, promised daughter a hundred dollars for the evening riding the Ferris wheel and told me to turn off the electricity when she was at the top, causing a trembling girl "for an hour hung in the darkness". Patricia defends herself father from accusations of sadism, calling such stories, tales that were designed to excite interest in the film.

Film critic Roger Ebert considers "Strangers" among the best of Hitchcock

A scene where a man crawling under a wildly spinning carousel, is not a photographic hoax, the actor actually crawled under the carousel. According to Hitchcock it was the most dangerous stunt, performed under his leadership.

In the script version of Raymond Chandler, Bruno Anthony in the end was arrested and placed in a psychiatric hospital, and in the final shot, Bruno was already in the hospital and writhing in a straitjacket.

For the episode in which the lighter guy falls in the gutter hatch and Bruno tries to get Hitchcock personally picked up trash lying on the bottom of the hatch.

Initially, the film was not completed with the scene where guy and Anne are going to train in another version, the tape ends just before this episode. The spool of this tape by mistake signed as the "British version", and decided that it showed in the UK. The "wrong" version of the film managed to spread across America.

Hitchcock with adolescence adored the short stories of Edgar Allan PoE and some of his films made the reference to his favorite author. In "Strangers on a train" a certain analogy can be traced between the rotating carousel at the end of the picture and work On "the Overthrow in the Maelstrom".

Hitchcock tradition carefully prepared climax of his films. In "Strangers on a train" the calculation was that in the memory of visitors will remain expressionist scene "chakotay" the carousel, which as the movement is falling apart. When creating this striking image was used in special effects — miniature projection background, mounting inserts. For seamless mixing all the elements together, said the film editor William Ziegler. First filmed how exploding a miniature model of a carousel. Then the image of the explosion was projected on a giant screen, against which was placed the crowd of crying children and screaming mothers, in which, it seems, and flying wooden horses flying apart of the attraction.

In the last scene of the American version of the film sisters Morton in the room of his house eagerly await fateful call from the guy. With the aim to emphasize its importance Hitchcock expressed the wish that the foreground was visible to the phone, and in the background are girls. The implementation of his plan interfered with the imperfect appliances at that time, not allowed to fit in one frame and the phone, and Actresses. To solve the difficulty in front of the camera put a giant dummy phone. Hearing the call, Ann runs up to the table and picks up the phone. However, the phone in her hand of normal size. "Everything was filmed in one plan," recalled Hitchcock. When Anne goes forward, the camera barely noticeable and served to meet her, so the phone is half a second behind the scenes. This time was enough to assistant the actress filed a normal telephone receiver.