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Before returning home to the States following a two-week mission trip to China, Roy (Woody Harrelson) and Jessie (Emily Mortimer) decide to continue their overseas adventure by taking the Trans-Siberian Express from Beijing to Moscow. Along the way, they befriend their cabin mates, Abby (Kate Mara) and Carlos (Eduardo Noriega), who are moving on to something new after teaching English in Japan.
In spite of their far-from-posh surroundings, things finally seem to be looking up for the young travelers. But their adventure suddenly takes a turn for the worse when, during a short stop, Roy doesn’t make it back on the train. Jessie gets off the train to wait for her husband to catch up—and their new friends decide to wait with her. But the overnight stop brings more trouble than even a reformed bad-girl like Jessie can handle.
Transsiberian is an eerily suspenseful film. From the very beginning, director Brad Anderson (with the help of Spanish cinematographer Xavi Giménez) instills his audience with a sinking feeling—one that quickly settles into the pit of your stomach and refuses to leave. Even as Roy and Jessie leave Beijing and board the train, you’ll just know that their journey won’t be the fun, happy vacation that Roy seems determined to make it.
And once they’re on board, that sinking feeling grows and spreads. The train is dark and claustrophobic. It’s grimy and rundown. And it’s filled with wizened old travelers who drink lots of vodka and provide foreshadowing warnings. Meanwhile, outside their window is the stark, cold emptiness of Mongolia and Siberia. You’ll know that it won’t end well.
At the same time, however—despite the film’s grim, claustrophobic settings—Anderson manages to refrain from being too horror-movie obvious. There aren’t any angry, disfigured old Russian men jumping out at the characters with their scary, gravelly-voiced threats. Instead, this slow-boiling thriller builds gradually—and when it finally bubbles over into those shocking, hide-your-face-in-a-pillow moments, you won’t know what hit you.
Although there are a couple of minor plot holes, the film’s greatest fault lies in its character development. Though you’ll get to know a little bit about the characters, they’re never fully developed. You’ll never really understand them (or care about them) as much as you could—which means that, as a result, the film isn’t quite as powerful as it could have been.
Still, flaws aside, Transsiberian is a gripping and gut-wrenching thriller. So if you’re looking for a film that’s enticingly eerie and heavy in suspense, this is one chilling adventure that you won’t want to miss.
