Review of Night Train to Munich

If you come into Night Train to Munich expecting a visionary masterpiece on par with director Carol Reed's better known The Third Man you will likely be disappointed.

Night Train to Munich is, however, a classic wartime romp. It is a thriller that masterfully weaves an impending World War II into a well written script heavy on the cat and mouse chase between British agent Gus Bennett (Rex Harrison) and the Nazis as they seek to secure advanced armor plating technology invented by the father of convenient love interest Anna Bomasch (Margerte Lockwood).

The film really shines when the characters board the titular night train and the chance of survival for Bennett and Bomasch decreases as the stakes become greater. The interplay between the major characters takes on a palpable tension, specifically in what is probably the most dramatic eating of tea and biscuits ever.

The only drawbacks here might be a slightly icky "love story" where the agency of the female lead is in question and some rather dated set pieces that lack the gravitas of Reed's train scenes.

Overall though, Night Train to Munich is an exciting addition to classic wartime dramas/thrillers.