acidburn-10 "Night Train Murders" is one of those several rape revenge flicks that came from the 1970's following "I Spit On Your Grave" and "Last House On The Left", and now this one, which is just as unsettling as the previous two, where in this one we have 2 girls terrorised by 2 men and a woman, who torture and eventually kill the young girls and then they come into contact with one of the dead girl's parents and when they find out the father wreaks revenge.Okay I found this movie way too unsettling even for my taste, not that I'm saying that this movie is terrible, it just started off well and the torture scenes were this movie's strong point as they were filled with tension and it made me really feel for these girls, but it's the second half of this movie which was a kind of let down, It just didn't have the pay off that I was hoping for, and there could have been a bit more too it. But on a positive not I did like the distinctive use of blue light while the girls are being held captive on the train along with the films cinema photography is perfectly executed as most of the film is shot in claustrophobic spaces adding to the tension that builds as the film progresses is also another of this movie's highlights.The acting was also strong and convincing especially from the two unlucky girls who were both outstanding. Enrico Maria Saleno who plays the father was also great as he goes from mild mannered doctor and then pushed to his very limits of sanity. But it's Macha Meril who plays the woman of the trio of sickos who steals the show as the ice cold queen who quickly goes from early victim to taking charge of the other two thugs. All in all "Night Train Murders" is a decent enough horror movie and not just a clone of "Last House On The Left" and definitely a must see for fans of 70's Italian horror movies.

Red-Barracuda What makes Night Train Murders so interesting is that it is highly exploitative material presented in a highly stylised manner. Its story has a couple of girls boarding a night train and then being subsequently brutalised and sexually assaulted by psychopaths. There's no getting away from it, its pure grind-house sleaze. But unlike others of its ilk it has a polish and production value that sets it apart somewhat. It's helmed by director Aldo Lado who had previously directed a couple of excellent gialli, Short Night of the Glass Dolls (1971) and Who Saw Her Die (1972). Like those two this is another well directed affair. Lado paces things well and creates a genuinely unnerving atmosphere. The middle section of the movie is where the rough stuff happens and it is highly stylised. Coloured lighting is used to make the interior of the train look a little more interesting but also to create a definitely unsettling atmosphere. In addition, the music by Ennio Morricone adds a lot to the intensity with a main theme that sounds not unlike a train. On a similar note the film also bizarrely includes a ditty by Greek crooner Demis Roussos which seems wildly inappropriate for a video nasty!There are some good acting performances too but special mention has to go to Macha Meril as the mysterious female sociopath who provokes the two thugs into the acts of depravity. Meril is an extremely striking looking woman who also made a highly memorable turn in Dario Argento's Deep Red (1975), in this film she has more of a starring role and she is quite exceptional. The idea of the enigmatic and sadistic woman behind the attacks is a good one and gives the movie a more original feel. However, despite the stylish presentation Night Train Murders is still pretty much full of the more typical grimy sleaze you would expect. The middle section is quite brutal and the final revenge fairly violent. Ultimately, this is a nasty movie with cinematic flair.

Scott LeBrun Two teen aged girls, one German (Irene Miracle) and one Italian (Laura D'Angelo) are travelling across Europe by train when they encounter two thieves, Blackie (Flavio Bucci) and Curly (Gianfranco De Grassi). The two thieves initially have a rascally charm about them, but later, spurred on by an alluring and extremely twisted mystery lady (Macha Meril), as well as a little heroin shooting, the trio proceed to torture these poor girls psychologically and sexually, with an unhappy ending for both of them. Eventually, they find shelter with the parents, and the dad becomes filled with homicidal rage when he realizes what has happened. If all of this sounds like Wes Craven's "The Last House on the Left", you'd be dead on. In fact, two of the alternate titles for this Italian spin on the tale are "Second House on the Left" and "New House on the Left". (Craven himself, of course, having been inspired by the Bergman classic "The Virgin Spring".) But whatever this movie lacks in originality, it makes up for with its own unrelentingly seedy and disturbing mood. For its first half, it maintains a fairly light approach (some viewers may find their patience tested a bit), and takes its utterly dramatic turn after the Meril character has had her way, which gives "Night Train Murders" a particularly twisted touch with the primary instigator being a female. For as long as poor Miracle and D'Angelo are victimized, the atmosphere and sense of danger are thick and heavy, and the lighting extremely moody. The actors all do a fine job, especially the luscious Meril in the central, most potent role. Unlike "The Last House on the Left", the makers of this movie refuse to give us a cut and dried type of ending, daring to prevent their viewers from a feeling of real satisfaction. Overall, their movie is genuinely uncomfortable, compelling stuff that can't be ignored. With its striking cinematography by Gabor Pogany and the haunting music by the always dependable Ennio Morricone, "Night Train Murders" is the kind of thing where one may likely want to look away, as it shows some of the darkest aspects of human nature, demonstrating that they can exist inside the supposedly more "respectable" members of society who in the end can be no better than the dregs, and doesn't cut away. Seven out of 10.

Witchfinder General 666 Director Aldo Lado is doubtlessly best known for his beautiful and eerie Gialli "La Corta Notte Delle Bambole Di Vetro" ("Short Night of the Glass Dolls" / "Malastrana", 1971) and "Chi L'ha Vista Morire?" ("Who Saw Her Die?" / "The Child", 1972). And rightly so, as "L'Ultimo Treno Della Notte" ("The Night Train Murders", 1975) isn't nearly as good nor as elegant as the man's Gialli. A blatant rip-off of Wes Craven's Exploitation classic "The Last House on the Left" of 1972 (which itself is a remake of Ingmar Bergmann's 1960 film "The Virgin Spring"), "The Night Train Murders" bears no surprises, and only few elements that make it worthwhile, other than a score by Ennio Morricone. "The Last House on the Left" spawned a variety of (mostly Italian) rip-offs in the following years, including Ruggero Deodato's ultra-nasty "House on the Edge of the Park" (1980), and one must sadly say that this is one of the less interesting ones. Personally, I have never been the biggest fan of Craven's film, but it is doubtlessly a milestone that was disturbing, genuinely shocking and unforgettable once one has seen it. This film has no originality, and while it has the potential to shock and disturb, it only does so in a depressing manner.***Warning! BIG SPOILERS!!!*** Lado simply takes the story of Craven's film and transfers it into a train. Laura (Martina Berti) and Margaret (Irene Miracle) are going by train from Munich to Verona in order to spend the Christmas holiday with Laura's family. Two lowlife scumbags and a perverted bitch (played by Macha Méril, who is best known for her role in Argento's "Profondo Rosso" from the same year) begin to harass the two girls, later rape them. Later they accidentally kill one of the girls in a sadistic game, the other girl throws herself out of the window of the running train and dies. As it happens, fate then leads the three scumbags to the house of Laura's parents, and her dad is eager to take bloody revenge for his little girl...No surprises here, just an exact copy of the plot of "The Last House on the Left", only that it isn't as effective and the ending is very lame. At least in Craven's film we saw all the scumbags wiped out by the parents, whereas in this film, the crazed female culprit, probably the worst of the pack, is still breathing by the film's end. Now that's what I call depressing: Having to see the poor girls tormented and killed first, and then not even having the opportunity to see all those responsible die agonizing deaths - this kinda makes you feel cheated as a viewer."The Night Train Murders" is very sadistic, but actually pretty tame in its actual depiction of gore and sleaze compared to other films of the kind. Even though i obviously didn't like this film, I have to say that it does have some good aspects. The performances are above average for a low-budget exploitation feature, particularly the beautiful Macha Méril, whose face every Italo-Horror fan will recognize from Argento's "Profondo Rosso", is wonderfully diabolical in the role of the perverted bitch she plays. The score by Ennio Morricone is good, of course, and there is one sequence that, even though depressing, goes beyond the plot of "Last House on the Left" and therefore can be applauded for its uncompromising character: The sequence in which a spectator, instead of helping the girls or calling for help happily joins their rapists once invited. Though unpleasant to watch, this scene uncompromisingly visualizes the rotten character of so many 'square' people who are always happy to do evil things, as long as they are not likely to get caught.Still, "The Night Train Murders" is a disappointment in my eyes. The film's utterly depressing character isn't necessarily a flaw, in my opinion. I tend to love depressing, shocking and disturbing Exploitation films. This one just has no originality, and in the end it just leaves a feeling of emptiness, since the revenge part is not properly completed. Not recommended.