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Silver Streak

Play trailer Poster for Silver Streak PG 1976 1h 53m Comedy Action Romance Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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77% Tomatometer 26 Reviews 71% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
While on a cross-country train ride, overworked book editor George Caldwell (Gene Wilder) begins an unexpected romance with an enigmatic woman named Hilly Burns (Jill Clayburgh). His vacation is interrupted, however, when he witnesses a murder for which he is then accused. The true villains kidnap Hilly and eject Caldwell from the moving train. Desperate, Caldwell teams up with car thief Grover Muldoon (Richard Pryor), and together they must save Hilly while avoiding the police.
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Silver Streak

Critics Reviews

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Pauline Kael The New Yorker 01/22/2024
Silver Streak is so helplessly unslick that it doesn't even have the wit to show Wilder looking at the book upside down. Go to Full Review
Eddie Harrison film-authority.com Jul 13
3/5
…Silver Streak is a slick package, with a roll-call of comic and acting talents having fun with a silly script that’s a neat thriller parody…Gene Wilder, Richard Pryor and co just about keep this train on track… Go to Full Review
Grant Watson Fiction Machine 10/04/2023
7/10
There is so much here to enjoy, particularly for fans of Wilder and Pryor. Go to Full Review
Rene Jordan El Nuevo Herald (Miami) 08/15/2023
... an amalgamation of conflicting genres. [Full review in Spanish] Go to Full Review
Steve Warren The Barb (Atlanta) 05/09/2023
A pretty good movie, but it throws away a lot of potential for greatness. Go to Full Review
Mike Massie Gone With The Twins 08/31/2020
7/10
Like a Mel Brooks comic spellbinder, merged with some of the flavor of Inspector Clouseau. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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rex w 3d "Silver Streak" won't win any best picture awards or Pulitzer Prizes, but it has a few rip-roaring laughs and a train-crash scene that was outstanding for its time. If you don't have anything to do for two hours, you can't go wrong with giving this a peek. See more Ben L @Ptrex Feb 8 Perfection. If you don’t like this movie, as the Ramones said "leave home".. or what they would say today, "turn off you device and leave home!" See more Michael O. @OLDBRICKM Oct 19 Had to come here and Post a comment because this is my all time favorite film! It's better than any movie ever made in the history of film. Silver Streak is the best movie ever! See more thiago s @Thiagostone Jun 30 Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom See more Trevor M Jun 29 Silver Streak (1976) is a decent Gene Wilder-led action-comedy, with its greatest strength being its setting—the train. The confined yet dynamic environment provides a natural momentum to the story, allowing for some creative and engaging sequences that keep things moving. However, while the train elevates the film, it isn’t enough to completely save it from its flaws. The true highlight of the movie is Richard Pryor, who brings an electrifying presence to every scene he’s in. His charisma and comedic timing are unmatched, and every moment he’s on screen is pure gold. In fact, he’s so good that it almost feels like a missed opportunity that he isn’t the lead character—his energy could have carried the entire film. On the other hand, Jill Clayburgh’s character is frustratingly inconsistent. Somehow, she manages to be both aggressively flighty and weirdly sexual while still feeling completely bland. Her presence in scenes often derails the pacing rather than adding anything meaningful to the story. Speaking of pacing, the film struggles in this department. The first 25 minutes are particularly rough, filled with bizarre innuendos and an uncomfortably long love scene that drags on for what feels like an eternity. The overall runtime feels excessive, and the film could have been trimmed down by 30-40 minutes for a much tighter and more engaging experience. Then, of course, there’s the infamous decision to put Gene Wilder in blackface—a choice that was never a good idea and certainly hasn’t aged well. Even in the context of the film’s attempt at humor, it’s an unfortunate misstep that detracts from the overall experience. In the end, Silver Streak has its moments, thanks largely to Pryor and the built-in appeal of a train-based adventure. As the saying goes, adding a train makes every movie better—but unfortunately, even that can’t completely fix this one. See more Carlos I @carlosFibarra 09/15/2024 Silver Streak looks perfect on paper, I mean how could you lose with the Pryor/Wilder pairing? The problem is rather than blending the genres perfectly, it stumbles with them. You could feel that movie is unsure what it wants to be. It's not funny enough to be a comedy, and it doesn't have big enough sequences to be a good action/thriller. So it just ends up being a bland amalgamation of the two. See more Read all reviews
Silver Streak

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Movie Info

Synopsis While on a cross-country train ride, overworked book editor George Caldwell (Gene Wilder) begins an unexpected romance with an enigmatic woman named Hilly Burns (Jill Clayburgh). His vacation is interrupted, however, when he witnesses a murder for which he is then accused. The true villains kidnap Hilly and eject Caldwell from the moving train. Desperate, Caldwell teams up with car thief Grover Muldoon (Richard Pryor), and together they must save Hilly while avoiding the police.
Director
Arthur Hiller
Producer
Thomas L. Miller, Edward K. Milkis
Screenwriter
Colin Higgins
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Production Co
20th Century Fox
Rating
PG
Genre
Comedy, Action, Romance, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 3, 1976, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Feb 14, 2016
Runtime
1h 53m
Sound Mix
Stereo
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