Director: Jonathan Teplitzky
Starring: Colin Firth, Nicole Kidman, Stellan Skarsgård, Jeremy Irvine
Running Time: 116 minutes
Certificate: 15
Special Features: Extras on the DVD include interviews with many of the cast and crew that explore the making of the film and the true story on which it’s based.
Colin Firth is known for putting in powerful, dramatic performances and this is certainly the case in THE RAILWAY MAN, the harrowing true story of Eric Lomax, a prisoner of war who is still holding on to his hatred of those who tortured him decades after the war has ended. His wife (played by Nicole Kidman) is worried about him as he has intense nightmares and becomes very closed off with her. So when he learns that the interpreter who was there while he was being tortured is still alive, he sets off to find him and get his revenge.
Though all the images suggest this is Colin Firth’s film, it is really Jeremy Irvine who takes the lead, showing just how brave Lomax was by taking the fall in order to protect his friends and enduring weeks of torture at the hands of his captors. Young Eric is a very smart man, passionate about railways and trains. He appears at first to be something of a weakling, a nerd. He wears glasses and talks about trains. As the film progresses, however, we see the extent of his courage in the face of danger.
THE RAILWAY MAN is an incredibly brave and harrowing true story which certainly deserved to be told and, though the film is superbly acted – especially by Firth and Irvine – it somehow lacks that element that would make it compelling. The result is a constant switch between the horrific torture young Eric must endure and the quiet, tormented, stoicism of the older Eric. It is either nasty and violent or just too quiet, with not enough time dedicated to the aftermath.
What happened to Eric at war is only part of what made him who he was in later life. By cutting out what came between, THE RAILWAY MAN misses the chance to be one of the most powerful biopics of recent years. The powerful ending – and knowing that it lies in truth – certainly has an important message for viewers. However, it is all too quick, too rushed to really make the impact it should have.
[usr=3] THE RAILWAY MAN is out now to buy on DVD and Blu-ray, from Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
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