Bob Holt's last journey as a Railway engine driver before his retirement, a journey disturbed by his distress at leaving the Railway, and his suspicions of the relationship between his wife and his fireman. Aboard the train are a pair of pickpockets, a honeymoon couple, a drunk, a temperance pamphleteer and a host of familiar types, all more-or-less bizarre in characteristically English ways. Bob takes an unexpected course of action, and the characters start interacting in varied and unexpected ways. When, at last, the train stops, all has been resolved, but not as might have been expected at the beginning of the journey.
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Perfect cast and a good story
Good story, Not enough for a whole film
A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.
It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.
Director: BERNARD VORHAUS. Screenplay: H. Fowler Mear, John Soutar. Based on an original screen story by J. Jefferson Farjeon. Photography: William Luff, Percy Strong. Supervising film editor: Jack Harris. Film editor: Lister Laurance. Art director: James A. Carter. Hair styles: Charles. Music director: W.L. Trytel. Production supervisor: John Brahm. Assistant director: James Davidson. Sound recording: Baynham Honri, Leo Wilkins. Visafone Sound System. Producer: Julius Hagen. Filmed with the full and courteous co-operation of the Great Western Railway. Cars supplied through the courtesy of Messsrs A.C. (Acedes) Cars, Ltd. A Twickenham Film Studios Production, released in the U.K. through Twickenham Film Distributors: October 1935. U.S. release through Olympic Pictures. Not copyrighted in the U.S.A. Not theatrically released in Australia. 66 minutes. SYNOPSIS: The driver of an express train suffers a breakdown. COMMENT: A definite must-see for railway buffs (in fact it would easily figure on the top ten), thanks to the wholehearted co-operation of the Great Western Railway which has produced some absolutely staggering scenes and effects. Aside from a bit of obvious under-cranking right at the very beginning of the movie, technical credits are extremely proficient. Direction and camerawork strike even a casual viewer as especially skillful. The script is serviceable enough too, though some of the players, particularly Julien Mitchell as the mad engineer, are inclined to over-do things a little. Olga Lindo also seems a bit of a pain as the overly sympathetic wife, but that's the fault of the script. Judy Gunn makes a pleasant heroine, and it's nice to see Eve Gray laying on the charm as a confidence girl.
Although only an hour long, The Last Journey is a very gripping vintage British thriller.A train driver, just about to undertake his last job before retiring discovers his fireman is having an affair with his wife, so he takes a gun and threatens him with it and he forces him to keep putting coal into the fire to make the loco go faster. As a result, the train misses all its stops and arrives at its destination early. One of the passengers manages to get the driver to slow down. There is a rather motley collection of passengers on board including a newly married couple on honeymoon, a pair of crooks, a woman who tells everyone not to drink alcohol, a couple with some very lively children, a Frenchman and a lone boy.Despite its low budget and age, I enjoyed watching this movie. It is available in the UK on VHS as a double feature with The Ghost Camera.A must for all vintage movie fans and also rail enthusiasts. Excellent.Rating: 4 stars out of 5.
A definite must for railway buffs (in fact it would easily figure on the top ten), thanks to the wholehearted co-operation of the Great Western Railway which has produced some absolutely staggering scenes and effects. Aside from a bit of obvious under cranking right at the very beginning of the movie, technical credits are extremely proficient. Direction and camera-work strike even a casual viewer as especially skillful. The script is serviceable enough too, though some of the players, particularly Julien Mitchell as the mad engineer, are inclined to over-do things a little. Olga Lindo is also a bit of a pain as the overly sympathetic wife, but that's the fault of the script. Judy Gunn makes a pleasant heroine, and it's nice to see Eve Gray laying on the charm as a confidence girl.
Despite the decades of subsidised film study in Britain, little is known about their pre-Korda years. Critics and thesis writers have been inhibited by the lack of plagiarisable material and the awfulness of much of what was about.The neglect of Maurice Elvey's films is the most obvious result but here is a modest English program entertainment which reverses expectations. Script and performance are less than imposing as passengers with problems accumulate but the energy is startling in the staging of the story of the demented engine driver taking the Mulchester (!) local round the curves at lethal speed, filmed air to rail, road to rail and rail to rail as the racing car, plane and goods trains run level with the speeding passenger local, in the best silent serial traditions.Rail freaks will be delighted by the documentary like coverage of procedures and equipment.Director Vorhaus developed a following when David Lean named him as mentor but most of his output is mediocre or worse. This one suggests Lean may have known something we don't.
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