Patricia Wallace (Evelyn Venable) is the star of a Broadway show. After having a fight with screenwriter and director Jimmy Hart (Victor Jory) she decides to quit without notice. She is christening a new streamline train called the Streamline Express that goes from New York to California. She decides to run off and marry the rich Fred Arnold (Ralph Forbes). They plan on taking the Streamline and then get married in California.
When Jimmy finds out that Patricia has skipped, he goes after her. Tickets on the new train are sold out. Jimmy managed to stow away in a luggage cart to get past the gate. Once on board he hunts down Patricia. She tries to have him thrown off but he bribes the Steward into letting him take his place.
Also on board is John Bradley (Clay Clement) and his mistress Elaine Vincent (Esther Ralston). Little do they know that John’s wife Mary (Erin O’Brien-Moore) is on the train as well. Bradley gives his mistress a diamond necklace. She is forced to give it to Gilbert Landon (Sidney Blackmer). He is aware of Elaine’s past and basically blackmails her. She, of course, tells John that the necklace was lost but since no one can find it, the assumption is that it was stolen. Landon is able to cast suspicion on Jimmy as the thief.
“Streamline Express” was released in 1935 and was directed by Leonard Fields. It is a poverty row “B” movie and a comedy/mystery without any mystery. The quality of the prints available is not the best. There are spots where it jumps and freezes but it’s clear enough and even though the sound quality is not perfect there is enough clarity to understand everything. The prints may be from an old VHS tape.
The special effects are not exactly special. The miniatures look like miniatures and the scenery looking out the front windows go left to right instead of forward.
Many have remarked that “Streamline Express” is a rip off of Howard Hawk’s film “Twentieth Century” with John Barrymore and Carole Lombard. That’s possible since they are only a year apart. If it is it didn’t bother Hawks any since there was never a plagiarism suit.
The train itself is interesting. It’s not exactly a train as there is only one car and it is basically a monorail. Still it has a great futuristic, yet art deco look to it. It’s also a bit of a tardis since it is larger on the inside than on the outside. It’s quite luxurious.
Ester Ralston, who played Elaine Vincent, couldn’t remember anything about it other than it was a turkey. Although Elaine’s part may not have been memorable Victor Jory, Evelyn Venable and Ralph Forbes are very much so. The back and forth patter between the three of them is quite amusing.
There isn’t much in the way of plot. More of a merry mix-up movie than anything else. It’s a fun bit of fluff to pass the time.