Train Dreams takes us through the life of Robert Grainier (Joel Edgerton – Red Sparrow), from 1893 when he’s sent as a young boy to Fry, in Idaho, having never knew his parents, adopted and growing up to become a labourer, logging trees at the time when early railways were being built, so business was booming.
However, logging season takes it out of you, so it’s a good job he chances upon Gladys (Felicity Jones – The Brutalist), they have a baby daughter and make a life together. But then the new season will start, and he’s off again to this very dangerous job where men can be killed on site, no-one knows where they come from, and so they’re just buried in a relatively-unmarked grave.
With any luck, after a few years of this, they’ll be able to afford their own sawmill and then he can stay home with the missus, but life ain’t all sunshine and rainbows, so how it plays out, I’ll leave you to discover.
With support from William H Macy (The Running Man) as elderly logger, Arn Peeples, and Will Patton (Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1) narrating the story, Train Dreams is one of those films where we take a trip through a period in someone’s life, almost from start to finish, but while it’s well-acted, particularly from Edgerton – who shows that while he walks around with a big beard, he’d have made a far better Joel Miller in HBO’s TV adaptation of The Last Of Us than Pedro bloody Pascal did – it highlights just how we drift through life, and how most of it is, ultimately, rather pointless. Plus, how some people in our lives stay, and some just pass through briefly.
So, it’s engaging for its running time, and leaves you with things to think about, but it fits into the ‘worth a look’ category, rather than ‘must see’. And i presume the near-4:3 aspect ratio was because it’s effectively a period piece, but I’m sure a standard ratio would’ve been perfectly fine. Feels a bit arty-farty to make it 1.37:1.
It was interesting, though, when Robert spots a black bear passing by at one point, and one of the production companies involved in Black Bear. Yes, I’m a nerd like that.
Nick Cave also seems to be following me around, lately, with music in this film’s theme, as well as writing and scoring The Death of Bunny Munro, and my recently rewatching the first 3 Scream films (Red Right Hand).
Thanks to our friends at Netflix for the screener prior to release.
Train Dreams is on Netflix from today, but isn’t yet available to pre-order on Blu-ray or DVD. However, once announced, it will appear on the New DVD Blu-ray 3D and 4K releases UK list.
Check out the trailer below:
Detailed specs:
Cert: 
Running time: 101 minutes
Release date: November 21st 2025
Studio: Netflix
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1 (ARRIRAW (4.6K)
Score: 6/10
Director: Clint Bentley
Producers: Michael Heimler, Will Janowitz, Marissa McMahon, Ashley Schlaifer, Teddy Schwarzman
Screenplay: Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar
Novella: Denis Johnson
Music: Bryce Dessner
Cast:
Robert Grainier: Joel Edgerton
Gladys Grainier: Felicity Jones
Boomer: Clifton Collins Jr
Fu Sheng: Alfred Hsing
Toomis: David Olsen
Mr. Sears: John Patrick Lowrie
Apostle Frank: Paul Schneider
Elijah Brown: Brandon Lindsay
Arn Peeples: William H Macy
Ignatius Jack: Nathaniel Arcand
Boss: Eric Ray Anderson
Billy: John Diehl
Claire Thompson: Kerry Condon
Kate Returned: Zoe Rose Short
Carnival Barker: Sean San José
Woman at TV: Bonni Dichone
Wolf Boy: Cisco Hoberock
Pilot: Amelia Hilson
Pilot’s Father: Clark Sandford
Narrator: Will Patton
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.