Night Train To Munich (1940)

In the fraught lead-up to World War II, British cinema responded to rising geopolitical tensions with a wave of clever, patriotic, and suspenseful thrillers. Night Train to Munich (1940), directed by Carol Reed, is a standout in this cycle. Often seen as a spiritual successor to Alfred Hitchcock’s The Lady Vanishes (1938), it combines witty dialogue, romance, espionage, and an increasingly tense atmosphere into a brisk and entertaining thriller that remains surprisingly relevant and enjoyable today.

Plot Summary

Set in the shadow of World War II’s outbreak, the story begins in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia, where brilliant Czech scientist Axel Bomasch (James Harcourt) becomes a target for German intelligence due to his work on armaments. He escapes to Britain, but his daughter, Anna (Margaret Lockwood), is captured and sent to a concentration camp. From there, she is rescued—apparently—by Karl Marsen (Paul Henreid), an old family friend who is secretly a Nazi agent.

Anna and Marsen travel to Germany under the false impression that Karl is helping her reunite with her father. However, British intelligence, led by the daring and irreverent agent Dickie Randall (Rex Harrison), intervenes. Disguising himself as a German officer, Randall infiltrates the Nazi operation, retrieves Anna and her father, and they all flee aboard a night train to Munich. The journey becomes a taut, cat-and-mouse game, culminating in a dramatic standoff at the Swiss border.

Performances and Characters

Rex Harrison gives a charismatic and playful performance as British spy Dickie Randall. This role set the template for the sort of urbane, sardonic intelligence agent that would later define characters like James Bond. Harrison manages to blend suave self-assurance with a touch of recklessness, making Randall both heroic and entertaining. His performance injects much-needed levity into a film dealing with dark subject matter.

Margaret Lockwood, already a major star from The Lady Vanishes, again proves herself a compelling screen presence. As Anna Bomasch, she balances vulnerability with resilience, never allowing herself to be reduced to a mere damsel in distress. Her chemistry with Harrison is understated but genuine, and she brings emotional grounding to a film that could otherwise lean too heavily into genre mechanics.

Paul Henreid (billed here as Paul von Hernried) plays Karl Marsen with subtle menace. This is one of Henreid's early roles before his more heroic turn in Casablanca (1942). He’s particularly effective as a seemingly sympathetic figure who gradually reveals himself to be manipulative and fanatical.

Of special note is the inclusion of Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne reprising their beloved comic roles as cricket-obsessed Englishmen Charters and Caldicott, first seen in The Lady Vanishes. Their dry, quintessentially British banter provides comic relief while also reinforcing the film’s patriotic undercurrents. Their inclusion links the two films both tonally and structurally.

Direction and Style

Director Carol Reed, who would later achieve international acclaim with The Third Man (1949), brings a brisk pace and tight control to the film’s tone. While the early sequences are marked by melodrama and exposition, once the characters board the train, Reed demonstrates masterful command over suspense. The film’s centrepiece—set almost entirely aboard the train—is a masterclass in confined-space tension, where shifting identities and allegiances create a web of danger.

The cinematography by Otto Kanturek is atmospheric and effective, using shadows and framing to evoke a noir-like paranoia. There are several inventive visual touches—such as the eerie portrayal of Nazi-controlled Berlin and the claustrophobic train interiors—that emphasize the characters’ peril. Malcolm Arnold’s musical score is serviceable, though it plays a largely supportive role rather than standing out on its own.

Themes and Subtext

At its core, Night Train to Munich is a wartime propaganda film—but it is one that doesn’t sacrifice entertainment for messaging. The film deftly balances thrills and ideology, presenting a clear moral binary between Britain’s plucky, freedom-loving protagonists and Nazi Germany’s calculated inhumanity. At the same time, it avoids overt jingoism, preferring a tone of stoic confidence and quiet heroism.

One of the film’s most compelling thematic threads is the use of disguise and deception. Nearly every major character pretends to be someone they’re not at some point—Randall impersonates a Nazi officer, Marsen plays a helpful friend, and even the neutral Swiss border guards are not what they seem. This recurring motif not only heightens the suspense but mirrors the uncertainty of the pre-war moment, where trust was increasingly precarious.

There’s also a subtle exploration of identity and allegiance. Anna, for instance, must grapple with who she is—Czech, British sympathizer, refugee—and how much trust she can place in those around her. These questions echo the real-world dislocation experienced by millions during the rise of fascism.

Historical Context

Released in August 1940, Night Train to Munich arrived just months after the Battle of Dunkirk and as the Battle of Britain raged overhead. The film’s production was rushed, and it served a dual purpose: to entertain audiences and bolster British morale. It also aimed to show international viewers—especially Americans, who had not yet entered the war—how real and immediate the Nazi threat was.

Despite its propagandistic aims, the film never feels preachy. Instead, it presents its message with charm and narrative skill. Its fusion of spy thriller, romantic adventure, and political allegory reflects the British film industry’s ingenuity during a time of national crisis.

Legacy and Influence

Though Night Train to Munich is not as well-remembered today as The Lady Vanishes or The Third Man, it remains a touchstone in the British espionage genre. Its influence can be seen in everything from post-war spy films to the more stylized Cold War thrillers of the 1950s and 60s. It helped solidify the template for the “train thriller” subgenre, which includes later classics like From Russia with Love (1963) and The Narrow Margin (1952).

Critics and historians have praised the film’s sharp script (by Launder and Gilliat, who also penned The Lady Vanishes), its taut pacing, and its ability to mix genres without diluting their individual strengths.

Final Thoughts

Night Train to Munich is a polished, cleverly written thriller that showcases the best of British wartime cinema: resourceful, witty, tense, and fundamentally humane. Carol Reed’s direction is assured, the performances are uniformly strong, and the film’s thematic concerns remain strikingly relevant. As both entertainment and artifact, it is a film of notable craft and courage.

A swift and sophisticated wartime thriller, rich with suspense, charm, and subtle propaganda, elevated by Carol Reed’s direction and a standout cast.