The Great Locomotive Chase

The Great Locomotive Chase (1956)

This is based on a true story. During the Civil War, a Union spy, Andrews, is asked to lead a band of Union soldiers into the South so that they could destroy the railway system. However, things don’t go as planned when the conductor of the train that they stole is on to them and is doing everything he can to stop them.

During the American Civil War, the Union knows that weakening the Confederate’s transportation networks will greatly increase the chances of an attack being successful. James Andrews has been undercover within the South for some time so he is tasked with leading a group of men in as spies to get to the main railway bridges and burn them down. Things are edgy but going well until a zealous conductor on a train spots the men and plans to head the alarm. With no choice but to act, Andrews seizes the train and steals it to get quickly to his target blocking the track and chopping down telegraph lines along the way. However William Fuller is not to be put off and sets out in pursuit.



Supposedly a true story this Disney film is a basic but entertaining adventure that is more about getting a simple chase going than it is about painting an educational historical piece. However this is not a major criticism because it is rather interesting and fun despite being a pretty base piece of film-making. The chase is never that exciting but it does provide some energy into the film, while the solid characters are engaging enough for what is essentially a film aimed at older children. The lack of tension or danger was a problem for me because I didn’t think the mission should feel like the jolly jape that most of this makes it out to be – I imagine many viewers will struggle with the bright colourful pictures that this is presented in.
The cast are solid enough; few so anything special but most of them fill their roles well and make reasonable fists of the job. Parker has a big strong chest and a big square jaw and my God does he use them at every chance he gets – hardly a performance but good enough for the type of film. Lupton is more interesting in a smaller role. Hunter is fun as Fuller although I would have liked a bit more humour in his performance. Support from York, Firestone and a few others is good but none of them are anything that special. Much like the film itself, the actors all do the minimum but generally do OK.


Source; Movie mega upload

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