ILLUSIVE TRACKS

Post-war Europe is a mess, but the strangers on the train from Stockholm to Berlin have their own scores to settle in this odd hybrid film shot mostly in an ochre monochrome. Gunnar, a critic from Sweden, aims to ?make a difference? in the world. Clumsy beyond belief, he tries to be nice and helpful, but ends up practically destroying the train. Karin, a lovely married woman, plans to meet her husband in Berlin. Her husband, Henry, however, plans to kill her and marry his sweetheart, Marie; all three are on the train. Various interesting characters pepper the proceedings: Karin shares a cabin with a delightful older woman who has an unusual career; Gunnar shares a cabin with a neurotic older gay man and his horrible companion; there?s a train car full of Baltic refugees; and there?s an injured soldier whose mounting injuries become a running gag. The physical comedy and murder-mystery intrigue are fun; the twist at the end ? delicious. One of Sweden?s best in the last few years.