Direction, Pacing & Tone Director Jaume Collet-Serra keeps the film lean and kinetic. The confined train setting creates claustrophobia and urgency; quick cuts and close-ups heighten paranoia. The script balances action with moral dilemmas, giving the film a pulpy, almost noir-ish undercurrent. The middle act slows with explanatory scenes, which briefly reduce tension, but the finale resurges into satisfying payoff.