Clematis, New South Wales has seen some problems, one of them being the script to this television film. Insurance investigator Morrow (Hugh Keayes-Byrne) arrives in town to look into the death of Herbert (Colin Taylor), one of the local men. It seems he was walking home one night when he was struck by a train- the problem is the closest set of train tracks is fifty miles away and Herbert was in his backyard. Herbert's lover, Johnny (Max Meldrum), mourns the loss and prepares to sell the house they shared to local construction company owner Murdoch (Brian Wenzel). Morrow begins checking into the case and finds out Herbert's father and grandfather also died under mysterious circumstances. Also, when Morrow arrives in town, entire crowds of townsfolk appear and disappear right in front of his eyes. With the help of convenient love interest Vera (Ingrid Mason), Morrow and local cop McMasters (Ken Goodlet) set their sights on Murdoch.
Morrow is a quirky enough detective, trying to quit smoking by never lighting the ever present cigarette in his mouth. He must catch rides with Vera because he cannot afford the taxi service in the small town. However, the screenwriter and the director never address any other supernatural goings-on except the ghost train. There's an unexplained seance, Herbert's dead ancestry- nothing is covered in the finale, the film just ends. "The Death Train" plays like an unsuccessful pilot for a "The Night Stalker"-type show, it came out in 1978. It is also an hour long crime drama stretched beyond its comprehension limits to ninety eight minutes. It was solid average until I started questioning the wheres and whys when the thing ended. You won't die if you watch "The Death Train," but you will experience motion sickness. This is just another lazy effort, and surprising that no one bothered to read the script closely or edit it correctly. Leave it at the station.