Berlin Express (1948)

Set in the allied occupied post war Germany, a disparate group of international passengers including an American (Robert Ryan), a Frenchwoman (Merle Oberon), a German (Paul Lukas), an Englishman (Robert Coote), a Russian (Roman Toporow) and a Frenchman (Charles Korvin) find themselves traveling together on a train headed for Frankfurt and Berlin. But this is no ordinary train but one full of international intrigue that involves a political assassination. Directed by Jacques Tourneur (CAT PEOPLE), the film never quite rises above a slightly above average post WWII thriller with noir-ish shadings. The most intriguing aspect of the film is the background of a demolished Germany (this was filmed in Germany, not on a Hollywood soundstage) ravaged by war which is captured in detail by Lucien Ballard's (THE WILD BUNCH) evocative cinematography. Sadly, the film's "message" of countries working together for the good of mankind is still unheeded some 70 years after the film was made. It's no THIRD MAN but it's still worth checking out. With Charles McGraw and Reinhold Schunzel.