The Railway Man

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The Railway Man

R,

2014,

1h 48m,

History/

Drama/

Biography/

War/

Romance

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67%

126 Reviews

Tomatometer

68%

10,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

67%

Tomatometer

126 Reviews

68%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Eric Lomax (Colin Firth), a former British army officer and POW, discovers that the Japanese interpreter who tortured him is still alive. He and his new wife (Nicole Kidman) set out to confront the man who caused him so much pain.

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Critics Consensus

Understated to a fault, The Railway Man transcends its occasionally stodgy pacing with a touching, fact-based story and the quiet chemistry of its stars.

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Wendy Ide

The Times (UK)

Aug 24, 2022

Fortunately, the unwieldy structure doesn’t obscure the quality performances...

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Edward Porter

The Times (UK)

Aug 22, 2022

[An] absorbing, slightly exaggerated account of a true story...

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Larushka Ivan-Zadeh

metro.co.uk

Sep 6, 2017

3/5

It's well acted, with a few moments of remarkable intensity, but it's not a journey you'd rush to take.

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Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

Jul 28, 2025

4/5

"The Railway Man" is a flashback drama that grows and blossoms with powerful intrigue.

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Keith Garlington

Keith & the Movies

Aug 24, 2022

4/5

“The Railway Man” works because of the amazing story and the fabulous performances who bring it to life.

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Debbie Lynn Elias

Behind The Lens

Dec 14, 2019

The Railway Man packs an emotional punch to move even the coldest heart; so powerful you feel the pain, you feel burdens lift as demons are faced, you feel the forgiveness fill the screen and the room, and just watching you are lifted and uplifted.

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Nov 13, 2018

this movie was fun to watch, Teaches you a lot about P.O.W of the Japanese. Things that I find atrocious about this movie is the characters, those that are around Lomax. Patti is used as a technique to continue the story instead of developing her as a character. Also quite a lot of scene that have little to no reason whatsoever. The scene in which they count themselves in cards instead of actual numbers have no reason for being there, but this scene is repeated through the movie. The best part of this movie is its cinematic shots and its moving dialogues. I recommend watching it if you find truth hidden in some drama enjoyable.

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Albus R

Feb 7, 2018

Excellent movie and story along with a good cast, based on a true story. I was pleasantly surprised by this one

Ron R

Nov 21, 2017

Thoroughly enjoyed this film. It really brought home a few lost facts from the war. It captured the suffering of soldiers and proppa Ganda fed to the enemy to get them to keep fighting. I like how the two men became friends and continued that friendship until their deaths. Lives too short to hold grudges and this film based on true events shows that this philosophy can happen despite the horrendous treatment endured.

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Hermione W

Nov 6, 2017

Great and intense movie. Excellent acting.

Hermione

Sep 2, 2017

I admit I was bored in the beginning of the movie but I will never forget this gruesome tale. Nor will I ever get the opportunity to forget it. This movie has scarred me, I will never be able to forget it. Never in a million years. This is a horror film, not filled with jumpscared and demons. But it certainly has monsters and the zombie like figures who were enslaved by them. People might talk about this movie with a low opinion of it but the fact that this movie got me like this is insane

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Hagrid S

Aug 16, 2017

I love, Firth and Kidman to pieces..the premise of this movie was touching.. but I found the it boring. It didn't come together well. The ending was the best part.

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Jonathan Teplitzky

Director

Colin Firth

Eric Lomax

Nicole Kidman

Patti Lomax

Jeremy Irvine

Young Eric

Stellan Skarsgård

Finlay

Hiroyuki Sanada

Nagase

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Synopsis

Eric Lomax (Colin Firth), a former British army officer and POW, discovers that the Japanese interpreter who tortured him is still alive. He and his new wife (Nicole Kidman) set out to confront the man who caused him so much pain.

Director: Jonathan Teplitzky
Producer: Chris Brown, Bill Curbishley
Screenwriter: Frank Cottrell Boyce, Andy Paterson
Distributor: Weinstein Co.
Production Co: Archer Street Productions
Rating: R (Disturbing POW Violence)
Genre: History, Drama, Biography, War, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 11, 2014, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 11, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $4.4M
Runtime: 1h 48m

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