Movie Review: The Girl On The Train

I reviewed Paula Hawkin’s The Girl On The Train over a year ago. My conclusion was that I enjoyed the journey and mystery of the novel, but the conclusion was a big let down with the “twist” being something I sensed from early on. So while I overall liked the book’s journey, the ending brought down my score.

So going into the movie, I wasn’t expecting too much, but wanted to see how they brought the book to life and if they would change any large aspects of the story. Emily Blunt stars as the lead character, Rachel, a young woman struggling with alcoholism after a divorce. She commutes daily on a train, passing her old home as well as a home she feels contains the “perfect” couple. During one morning commute, Rachel sees something unexpected, which soon leads to a disappearance of a young woman. Rachel puts herself into the investigation because of what she saw, but soon questions herself and what she may have done that day. I found Blunt to be a great choice and made me like the film more than I would have without her. She did well with the complicated character and I felt like I trusted and cared for her, even at her worst moments, just like I felt when reading the book.

The cast also includes Luke Evans, Justin Theroux, Allison Janney, Haley Bennett, Rebecca Ferguson, as well as brief appearances from Laura Prepon and Lisa Kudrow, who actually starts to put the twist and truth in motion. Some of the casting didn’t seem quite right to me, but maybe that is because of the setting change. The film takes place in the New York City suburbs, which I was disappointed about because the book takes place in the London area. For me, the London setting really made me want to read the book because I took similar trains while I was at school for a semester in Southwest London. This gave me a bigger connection to the story and I could truly envision it. The setting in New York ultimately didn’t change the plot or the scenery that much, but I would have still preferred the original. In the film, Rachel still has a British accent as well, which seemed a bit random given the scenery changes they went with.

The film is pretty similar to the book overall, with a few small alterations here and there. I found myself interested in the film the entire time, but knowing the ending, didn’t feel overly invested in the mystery or suspense aspect. Compared to the book, the story seemed more unnecessarily sexualized and a bit unfocused at times, with a few scenes feeling a bit more random than they should have been. I would be curious to see how a person who knew nothing about the story would like it, because I don’t think they would be overly impressed. Even though the ending is a bit odd and rushed, I felt like the movie was good enough to see once, and Emily Blunt’s performance made the film better than it really was.

Read my The Girl On The Train book review here.