The Phantom Express

The Phantom Express (1932)

** (out of 4)

A train is heading down the tracks at night when the driver notices another train coming straight towards them. He derails the train to avoid the crash but during an investigation it's discovered that there wasn't another train. Soon we learn that several trains have been forced off the track due to a "ghost train" so the playboy son of the train owner decides to investigate.

THE PHANTOM EXPRESS starts off rather good as we're given the initial crash and then a small court room setting where we hear about the accident and the aftermath investigation. The idea of a ghost train is pretty interesting for a story but sadly the film pretty much falls apart from there and turns into a rather cheap "B" movie that doesn't know what to do with its subject.

For the most part the film remains slightly entertaining because of those opening scenes but one really wishes that the screenwriter had done more with it. To be fair, I'm sure the writer would have wanted to do more but obviously they were working on a small budget and I'm sure very little time. The performances in the film are about average. The film does contain some nice cinematography and the train wreck scenes aren't nearly as bad as you might expect.

This film begins with what appears to be a model train going down the model tracks. However, at least it is a pretty good model train! Anyway, it's supposed to be a real one and an accident is caused when the headlamp of another train appears to be heading right for them—and the train derails trying to avoid it. However, it turns out there was no other train—it's some sort of trick. So, the playboy son of the railroad owner decides to go undercover to investigate.

While this all might sound interesting, despite an interesting premise, the film really bogs down and shows that it's only a cheaply made film by a cheap-o studio. After all, the ending is just god-awful—with ridiculous stunts and an explanation of the mystery that made my brain hurt. I can clearly understand why this film was allowed to slip into the public domain—it's bad and there's little to recommend it.

Trains are being derailed along a particular line by a "phantom express" (or so the old drivers think). They see engine lights and hear train noises before their engines are derailed. Nobody else can see anything.

William Collier Jnr.(from "Little Ceasar" (1930)) plays Bruce Harrington, the bosses son who wants a chance to prove his worth. He begs to be allowed to investigate the mystery of the train wrecks.

J. Farrell MacDonald is outstanding as the old engine driver who is convinced something is up. The scene when he is sacked and comes home to his birthday party is very powerful. The emotion he gives to the scene where he is looking at his medals for bravery is very sad.

The exquisitely beautiful Sally Blane plays his daughter Carolyn. One look at her across a desk and Bruce is willing to forgo his playboy lifestyle and work under cover at the railroad - it is not that hard to believe!!!!

Claire McDowall, an original member of D.W. Griffith's stock company plays the mother. David Rollins was a handsome leading man in a few of the early sound musicals (he partnered Sue Carol in "The Breakaway") has the small part of the son Jackie. Lina Basquette was a Follies beauty and a star for Cecil B. DeMille (she starred in his "The Godless Girl") - she has a couple of fiery scenes as Betty, a girl friend of Bruce's. There is a ton of talent in this film - names that conjure up memories.

This is an outstanding drama that was not at all predictable. How they solve the mystery of "The Phantom Express" is surprising and not what you would expect.

Without a doubt, The Phantom Express (1932) is my all-time favorite early talkie, railroad-themed movie. J.Farrel McDonald is outstanding as Smokey Nolan, the long-time engineer. I've seen a few other movies where McDonald plays a railroad-related part (e.g., with Victor McLaglen in The Broadway Limited) and it would appear that McDonald probably worked for the railroads prior to becoming a very good character actor as he played his parts with a great deal of ease and apparent intimate knowledge of the subject matter. Phantom Express was also very interesting from the standpoint that it was shot in live action, in/around LA and the Southern Pacific Railroad (including real shots of the SP boardroom at the old Central Station at 5th and Alameda), the SP Alhambra Roundhouse, Burbank Tower, etc. Also, the special effects modelling scenes were very much ahead of their time in terms of realism. All together, an excellent film of which I own several copies.

The Phantom Express is an early talkie that impresses in a few ways. It's about a series of train accidents caused by an unexplainable phantom express whose headlights appear every few nights on the tracks. This mysterious train bears down on other locomotives causing them to brake suddenly and derail. The driver of the latest train to encounter the phenomena is fired in disgrace as the investigators do not believe his story. It's left to him and the son of the railroad president to clear his name and find out what is behind the notorious phantom express.

The Phantom Express is a fine example of one of the many mystery films released in the 1930's. Admittedly the actual mystery itself is a little easy to work out and the plot is structured such that it's obvious that the rival railroad company are behind things in some way. Nevertheless, there is still much to admire in this cool little film. As poverty row movies go, this has to be one of the better put-together. Where other cheap genre films of the 30's often restricted themselves to two or three studio-created locations, The Phantom Express includes many scenes set on the grounds of the rail-yard construction site. This authenticity is welcome and adds nice detail to proceedings. Conversely, I really enjoyed the model-work used for the train scenes. It was very well done and looked very cool, giving the film a lot of character and soul. This model-work was well integrated with the live action, especially in the final ride through the storm and was effective in generating suspense. A similarly well-handled thrilling scene was where the signalmen are tied up by thugs and made to helplessly watch the oncoming phantom express bear down the tracks on another train. Great stuff. Ultimately, the mystery of the phantom express is resolved with an explanation that I thought was kind of funny. I won't give anything away so will leave this little amusement for first time viewers to discover for themselves.

The cast acquit themselves well but a special mention should be made for J. Farrell MacDonald who is excellent as the fired train driver. The scene where he breaks down at his birthday party after being sacked is very good; MacDonald certainly put a lot of emotion into that moment. I also have to mention Axel Axelson, who plays MacDonald's trusty sidekick. Not only does he have a name that sounds like it should belong to an 80's hair metal guitarist, but he also has one of the craziest accents you are ever liable to hear. It seems to be a mix of Swedish, Dutch, Irish and possibly Martian. It's difficult to say with any certainty but it's funny as hell.

The Phantom Express comes recommended to anyone interested in early talkies and/or 30's mysteries. It's a very worthy little obscurity that has a great deal of charm about it.