

Two people, a Frenchman and a Jewish German woman, meet on a train while escaping the German army entering France.
Acting
Schneider and Trintignant speak volumes in whispered French.
Cinematography
Shot on actual moving trains—claustrophobia is real.
Direction
Granier-Deferre lets dread accumulate in silence.

Director
Pierre Granier-Deferre
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Shot on the actual Paris-Austerlitz to Bordeaux line using real 1940s carriages.
Released when French cinema was processing collaboration guilt; Schneider's own Jewish heritage shadowed her performance.