The Train (1964 film)
| The Train | |
|---|---|
Movie poster by Frank McCarthy
|
|
| Directed by | John Frankenheimer |
| Produced by | Jules Bricken |
| Written by |
Story & screenplay: Franklin Coen Frank Davis Uncredited: Walter Bernstein Howard Dimsdale Nedrick Young |
| Based on |
Le front de l'art by Rose Valland |
| Starring |
Burt Lancaster Paul Scofield Jeanne Moreau Michel Simon |
| Music by | Maurice Jarre |
| Cinematography | Jean Tournier Walter Wottitz |
| Edited by | David Bretherton |
|
Production
companies |
|
| Distributed by | United Artists |
|
Release date
|
1964 (UK) March 7, 1965 (U.S.) |
|
Running time
|
140 minutes (UK) 133 minutes (U.S.) |
| Country | United States France Italy |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $5.8 million |
| Box office | $6.8 million |
The Train is a 1964 American French international co-production war film directed by John Frankenheimer from a story and screenplay by Franklin Coen and Frank Davis, inspired by the non-fiction book Le front de l'art by Rose Valland, who documented the works of art placed in storage that had been looted by the Germans from museums and private art collections. It stars Burt Lancaster, Paul Scofield and Jeanne Moreau.
Set in August 1944, the film, shot in black-and-white, sets French Resistance-member Paul Labiche (Lancaster) against German Colonel Franz von Waldheim (Scofield), who is attempting to move stolen art masterpieces by train to Germany. Inspiration for the scenes of the train's interception came from the real-life events surrounding train No. 40,044 as it was seized and examined by Lt. Alexandre Rosenberg of the Free French forces outside Paris.
In 1944, masterpieces of modern art stolen by the Wehrmacht are being shipped to Germany; the officer in charge of the operation, Colonel Franz von Waldheim (Paul Scofield), is determined to take the paintings to Germany, no matter the cost. After the works chosen by Waldheim are removed from the Jeu de Paume Museum, curator Mademoiselle Villard (Suzanne Flon) seeks help from the French Resistance. Given the imminent liberation of Paris by the Allies, they need only delay the train for a few days, but it is a dangerous operation and must be done in a way that does not risk damaging the priceless cargo.
...
Wikipedia