Murder On L'Elegant Express!

Theatrical Release Poster

Howard Taft

Robert De Niro

Winona Ryder

*Murder on L'Elegant Express!* is a British 1989 comedy thriller film starring the members of Creosote - Jeremiah Creosote, George Hudson and Howard Taft - and featuring Robert De Niro, Winona Ryder, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ben Kingsley. The film parodies the 1950s Film noir style, shot on cameras from the era and scored using a full orchestra taking inspiration from Bernard Herman. It follows the efforts of Creosote's bumbling Detective Barnaby in his attempts to solve a murder on a train, while an array of eccentric characters are drawn into the event.

The events take place almost entirely on L'Elegant Express, a fictional steam train in Northern England, which is halted in a tunnel by a breakdown, during this time a body is discovered in a compartment. The train happens to be carrying Detective Barnaby (Creosote), businessman Mr Rodgers (Taft), and an off-duty train worker (Hudson) who has only got on the train to try and win back his ex-girlfriend Sarah Hope (Winoa Ryder), who is also travelling. Sarah ultimately becomes a love interest for all three men while the murder mystery continues to unravel. Prime suspects are the gang of mobsters led by Robert De Niro, and a threatening circus strongman played by Arnold Schwarzenegger. Ben Kinglsey plays a government minister travelling in first class, with an obvious political interest in the events. Much of the humor revolves around the trio's competition for the fair Ms Hope, which often causes them to miss vital clues to the murder.

The film made over £19 million at the box office and was generally positively received at the time, though current critical rankings rate the film at a more mixed critical reception, with a score of 60% on rotten tomatoes and 66/100 on Metacritic. Negative reviews claim the film falls into the same cliches as many other 1980s genre parody films, hinging on the presence of the band for its entertainment.

## Background

Following the surprise success of Night Boat on the Bosphorus, which far exceeded its £850,000 budget, Creosote received increasing numbers offer from large studios to create a follow-up picture. While determined to keep the film 'British' the band were tempted by the opportunity of a larger budget and ensemble cast being offered by Universal.

The band began formulating ideas for a script during the Break the World Tour which ran 1987-8, with Jeremiah intent on a murder mystery set in a luxury hotel, similar to "Miss Marbles". However, upon hearing soundings of the budget from Universal, Hudson suggested it be set aboard a steam train, parodying another Agatha Christie novel, Murder on the Orient Express. With the popularity of other genre parodies like Ariplane! and The Golden Gun series, Universal were willing to pour a considerable amount of money into the concept. As with Night Boat on the Bosphorus, Hudson and Taft took over the actual script writing, allowing Jeremiah to throw ideas for plot and characters in.

While they had wanted to enter production in early 1988, plans had to be put on hold as the band extended their tour to play the major festivals of that year. It wasn't until early 1989 that all members were free from touring and musical projects.