Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘The Lady Vanishes’

Written by Scott Edwards

Everyone has the feeling that they are going crazy sometimes, but some people firmly believe that they are in the right while everyone else around them is mistaken. It is hard to prove that you are of sound mind when it seems like the world is against you, you just have to stick with your story and make sure that it never changes, at least that is what the lawyers say. Even if everyone seems to be against you, you should never go against yourself, once you do that, well, you have lost the battle and more so, yourself.

After an avalanche has shut down the train line for the night, Iris Henderson and many other passengers are forced to take refuge in their hotel which is not used to this kind of volume of guests. As nothing seems to be going right for friends Caldicott and Charters, Miss Froy is loving the local life and enjoys herself by listening to people singing throughout the night. But when a game of musical chairs being played with elephants takes place above her room, Miss Froy and Iris call to complain and get the nuisance removed. As the stomping comes to an end, Iris is greeted by Gilbert who makes his disgust with her well known, but as he is getting ready to tuck himself in to bed in her room, he gets the call that allows him back into the attic for one more night.

As night turns into morning, everyone is up and ready to get on the train to reach their final destination. But Miss Froy has misplaced her bag and needs help in finding it before the train departs. Trying to help the kind old woman, Iris gets hit in the head by a falling flower planter and is struggling to stay awake. With Miss Froy by her side, Iris is loaded on to the train to go back home as she is going to get married in a few days and cannot miss her trip. Keeping her eye on the young bride to be, Miss Froy is able to keep her up and walking and the two go and get a cup of tea in the dining car. As the two women are feeling better, they return to the sleeper car and Iris passes out again, but when she comes to, her new friend seems to have vanished. 

Asking her fellow passengers what happened to Miss Froy, Iris is astounded to find out that nobody seems to remember the woman. Searching the train for her friend, Iris bumps into Gilbert who is happy to take up the hunt with her, but when he sees everyone’s response about the missing woman, he is starting to believe that Iris has made the entire story up. Talking with Dr. Hartz, a brain surgeon, Iris is made to feel like she has dreamed the entire thing as well, but when she returns to the dining car and sees Miss Froy’s name on a window, she knows that there is something amiss. Searching the train cars once again, Iris and Gilbert find a little clue in the luggage car that could prove that they are not making up the woman to begin with. But losing a pair of glasses in a fight with a magician, the two are left with only their word against everyone else’s. With their theories in hand, the two try to find out what is really happening on the train, and when they discover a secret that Dr. Hartz is keeping from them, all bets are off when it comes to their personal safety.

A very interesting tale that keeps you engaged throughout. With some clues being thrown your way about who could be behind the disappearance of Miss Froy, you are also left wondering if she might be a figment of Iris’ imagination as well. It all comes down to timing and that is questioned often in this movie to make sure you remember the timeline of events that have occurred. When you are left to trust no one, you are forced to question every character that has been put on the screen until you find out 'who done it', yet you may be surprised at who actually did it. With a fun twist during the finale, this is the kind of movie that shows you that no matter how good the special effects are in a feature, storytelling is the most important aspect of keeping the audience engaged.  

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