Stometer Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Kailansorac Clever, believable, and super fun to watch. It totally has replay value.

Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

Kamila Bell This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

robert-temple-1 This film about the Flying Scotsman is made using the real Flying Scotsman of that time, so it has total authenticity. Train buffs will love it, and so will people who love train dramas (one of my own weaknesses). For those who do not know what the Flying Scotsman Express was, I must explain that it was the name of the steam train service between London and Edinburgh, known also as an 'overnight sleeper' because people could sleep during the journey and wake up in the morning in Scotland. The train went daily from Kings Cross Station in London to Waverley Station in Edinburgh and was owned by the London and North Eastern Railway Company. The IMDb entry for this film mistakenly says that the actor Gordon Harker was in it, but it is questionable whether he really appears in the film. I see that this film is listed on his personal credits on IMDb. One would have to watch the whole film a second time to look for him to be certain. I did watch the beginning of the film a second time to be certain that his name is not on the credits. The only acting credits given are Moore Marriott, Pauline Johnson, Alec Hurley, and Ray Milland. This was Ray Milland's second credited film, and he was 21 going on 22 at the time. He does very well. Moore Marriott, later famous for his wonderful comic acting in countless British films, here plays a straight dramatic role very effectively, as the engine driver of the Flying Scotsman, who is about to retire. Although he was only 45 years old, he was so successfully made up that he looked a convincing 60 to 65. His fireman on his very last run before retiring is Ray Milland, who is in love with Marriott's daughter, played by the intrepid Pauline Johnson, who had been appearing in films since 1920. After this she made one last film in the same year (ironically about a train wrecker), and retired in late 1929. (She would later die at the young age of 47.) Pauline Johnson in this film has what Americans call 'a lot of spunk', and English people used to call 'a great deal of pluck', in other words liveliness, verve, and initiative, not to mention fearlessness. She does her own dangerous stunts in the film, climbing along the side of the speeding express train, as well as leaping off the train to pull a switch at the last second to avert a disastrous full-speed train collision. I would say that after her departure in 1929 she was a great loss to the screen. Alec Hurley plays the embittered villain of the story. He has been sacked by Marriott because of being drunk while being the fireman of The Flying Scotsman. He vows to get even. He wants to wreck the Flying Scotsman on Marriott's last run, in order to discredit him and destroy his perfect record of having arrived safely on time every day for thirty years. The film is directed by Castleton Knight (1894-1970). It was his second feature film, preceded by another one the same year which was both his and Ray Milland's first, and which also starred Moore Marriott (who by the way had been in films since 1912). Knight only made three more feature films, the next being THE PLAYTHING (1929, a film which appears to be lost) also starring Ray Milland. But Castleton is very little known. The train episodes in this film only constitute about a third of its 57 minute duration, but are definitely worth seeing by anyone interested in old steam trains. This film began as a silent and some sound scenes were added, along with plenty of background sound and music. Some titles remain, so it is a hybrid silent-and-sound combination. It is well worth watching if only for historical reasons, but is entertaining as well.

malcolmgsw This film was made by British International Pictures who with the Indian of the talkies decided to turn their unreleased ailments into part sound.Instead. of inserting sound sequences they turned the second half into a complete talkie.They also did this on The Informer and Kitty.By 1931 ailments were dead,and any cinema that could not afford the equipment closed.The sequence where the actors are walking along the outside of the train was truly hair raising.The actors had no doubles and there were no process shots.You could see the looks of sheer terror on the face of the actors.The cast is interesting.Ray Mill and is a rather cocky engineer in one of his early films.Moore Marriott is the train driver before he found fame with Will Hay a few years later.No doubt this film is popular with train enthusiasts for its many views of the steam era over eighty six years ago.

Chris Gaskin I recently picked up a VHS copy of The Flying Scotsman and found it rather interesting. It is available in the UK on VHS as part of the Steam Cinema Series on DD Video.The first half of this obscure movie is silent and we don't see any railway action. This starts in the second half, as does the sound. The engine's fireman sets out on his last trip before retirement. The previous day, he reported his driver for being drunk and gets suspended for this. He is on the train to get his revenge. The driver's daughter is also aboard. The suspended driver gets out of his carriage and goes to the engine by walking along the roof of the train, followed by the fireman's daughter. A fight breaks out when he arrives and the loco is uncoupled from the rest of the train, a points change just avoids a collision. After things have calmed down, the train continues its journey and arrives in Edinburgh on time, despite the delay.This movie used the correct loco, 4472 Flying Scotsman as well as the train of the same name. I believe some of the stars did their own stunts, including walking down the side of the coaches when it was at speed.The cast includes a young Ray Milland in one of his first movies.This is a must for railway enthusiasts and fans of old movies like myself. A treat.Rating: 3 stars out of 5.

boblipton Decent British part-silent about the life and love of cockney Ray Milland -- yes, that Ray Milland at the beginning of his career -- as the new fireman aboard the 'Flying Scotsman.' Of course he falls in love with the daughter of the Flying Scotsman's engineer, unbeknownst to any of the parties, and of course the old fireman, fired for drinking on the job, has vowed vengeance on everyone. The whole movie is photographed by Theodore Sparkuhl is Germanic, moody, shadowy lighting that produces an air of foreboding in every scene.