The Top 10 Best Train Movies
Got a Train Movies List. Just Got to Avoid Train Puns…
A lesser man would start a list of the 10 Best Train Movies with some terrible cliche, like “all aboard.” Luckily for you, I may be a lesser man, but I am a lesser many some semblance of self-respect. In movies, the train has always served as the perfect tool to trap people in a confined space with no escape. Despite the fact that train travel isn’t what it used to be, audiences still get the gist of what Hollywood is throwing down, and with two train movies heading down the track, it looks like Hollywood isn’t going to stop throwing it down. That’s why I’ve decided to round up the best train movies I could find. The only real rule was that the MAJORITY of the movie had to take place on a train (sorry Before Sunrise). So, put on your conductor’s cap and start shouting “choo-choo,” because this list is chugging its way to you.
… Man, that was a lot of train cliches. I just couldn’t help it
10. Under Siege 2: Dark Territory
Sometimes when I do these 10 Best lists, what I’m really saying is “a-lot-of-good-and-some-bad-movies-related-to-the-topic.” Back before he because a Macy’s Day float specializing in straight to DVD movies, Steven Seagal was a real action hero in Hollywood. Taking on bad guys wherever they might lurk. This time they just so happened to be lurking on a train. Now, I’m not going to say this is a great train movie, but I feel like it does deserve the mild honor of being on this list.
9. Unstoppable
Unstoppable was a really weird train movie. It felt very much like Michael Bay was trying to make a film loosely (and I mean very loosely) based on true events. The actual event was a runaway train meandered down the track at about the pace as an old woman speed walking through the mall. Of course, that’s not nearly exciting enough so the studios tossed in Chris Pine, Denzel Washington, and some dangerous chemicals just to keep things interesting.
8. The Darjeeling Limited
Wes Anderson is probably one of the few true auteurs, which is just a fancy way of saying when you’re watching a Wes Anderson movie, you know it’s a Wes Anderson movie. That’s the case with his train movie featuring the usual suspects of Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and Adrian Brody. His odd mix of vivid colors and elements combined with nearly apathetic performances create quite the contrast. Somehow it makes for quite the train ride though.
7. Source Code
Technically Source Code mostly takes place on a train. That’s because Jake Gyllenhaal is constantly sent back in time to try to discover the methods terrorist will use to attack it. Think of it as Groundhog Day if it was a train movie instead. The thing is that Jake doesn’t really have a lot of luck when it comes to getting out of each scenario alive. The good news is that he’s got a pretty handy spawn point, so he gets to enjoy his morning commute over and over and over again.
6. Silver Streak
Not only is this a great train movie, but it marks the first pairing of Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor together on the big screen. That fact alone is reason enough to include it on this list. The other reason is that train movies are never really that funny, so Silver Streak kinda felt like a perfect fit. It’s a fun twist on Hitchcockian themes as Wilder finds himself in the middle of a murder mystery on board a speeding train from Los Angeles to Chicago.