Tess (Ginger Minj) & DeeDee (Jujubee) have been best friends since they first met at Train Hostess Academy, where they promised one another they would see the world together. But for the past ten years, they have been working for dreary low budget commuter rail service Stank Rail. When their coworker Barbra (Latrice Royale) informs them that the company has shutdown and that they are out of a job, the girls don’t know what they are going to do. That is, until they overhear that luxury railway Glamazonian Express is looking for two last-minute replacements.

Tess & DeeDee can’t believe their eyes. The train is the most extravagant and opulent they have ever been on. And Cal (Brian Jordan Alvarez), the co-conductor of the train, is the man of DeeDee’s dreams. However, serving in first class are a trio of blonde mean girls from Tess & DeeDee’s school class—Amber (Brooke Lynn Hytes), Alli (Marcia Marcia Marcia) & Ayshleiygh (Symone). Shortly after the train takes off, Donna Dusk (Rachel Bloom) of the US Train Headquarters makes a startling discovery—that the train is headed towards an unprecedented weather event called a Stormaganza!

By the time word gets to Conductor Davenport (Chris Parnell), it’s too late. The train has already lost control, with no way to brake. President Gagwell (RuPaul Charles) has been altered of the situation, but it will ultimately come down to Tess & DeeDee to stop the runaway train and save the day.

Stop! That! Train! is a throwback to the Zucker Brothers-style disaster comedies like Airplane!, filled with physical humor, sight gags, and rapid-fire jokes and puns. While I wouldn’t say it’s on par with a Zucker Brothers movie, it is a solid, campy attempt. Not every joke lands, but there are several more just around the corner, and many are bound to hit. There’s all kinds of crazy and over-the-top things happening on this train, but everything is played straight (so to speak) by these characters, like nothing is actually out of the ordinary. It may take several viewings just to catch it all.

The characters are fun, and Tess & DeeDee have this earnest down-home feel to them, making the audience invested in and rooting for them. No matter what happens, they always remain upbeat and positive. There’s also a fun running gag with Barbra popping up in different jobs throughout the film. The movie is directed by Adam Shankman (So You Think You Can Dance), so of course there’s a fun song and dance number as the trio of blonde stewardesses give their safety demonstration. I’m not a Drag Race viewer, so I was not familiar with many of these cast members, but I thought all of the actors did an excellent job. It never felt like some kind of amateur movie.

While the majority of the main cast consists of drag queens, the characters themselves are just women—the fact that they are in drag is never even acknowledged. Howeever, the passengers and staff are filled with so many recognizable cameos, including Sarah Michelle Gellar, Paul Scheer, Joel McHale, Jerry O’Connell, Nicole Sullivan, Nicole Richie, Guy Branum, Charo, Evan Mulrooney, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Mayan Lopez, Missi Pyle, Matt Rogers, June Diane Raphael, Matt Rogers, and many more.

Bleecker Street Media/Alliance Home Entertainment have released Stop! That! Train! on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital. We were sent the Blu-ray release for review, which looks and sounds great. The video presentation really pops, with a clean, detailed picture that captures all of the colorful beauty of this train set. Dialogue is primarily focused in the center channel of the audio track, but the stereo and surround channels are well-utilized to give a more immersive feel. This is especially noticeable with the music and score.

The Blu-ray release consists of a single disc placed in a standard Blu-ray keepcase. There is no slipcover or digital copy included, but the disc does contain an entertaining feature commentary track as well as two short behind-the-scenes featurettes totaling about 5 minutes. There’s also a fun blooper/outtake reel that runs alongside the film’s credits.

What’s Included:

Film (1:30:11):

Blu-ray:
• 1080p / Widescreen 1.85:1
• Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Audio Description DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
• Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish

Extras:

• Commentary by Director/Producer Adam Shankman and Writers Christina Friel & Connor Wright (1:30:11)
  Director/producer Adam Shankman and writers Christina Friel & Connor Wright provide a fun and entertaining commentary throughout the film, discussing the tone and look of the movie, the casting process, the jokes, and more. They talk about how the film was originally written to take place on a plane, but when the change was made to a train, they didn’t alter it very much. They also discuss how the set was just a single train car that was constantly redressed, and share other interesting behind-the-scenes stories about the production.
• Adam Shankman: Director’s Vision (2:32)
  The cast and crew discuss the tone of the film, and working with director Adam Shankman. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with director Adam Shankman, executive producers Randy Barbato & Fenton Bailey, and stars RuPaul Charles (“President Gagwell”), Paul Scheer (“Male Passenger 1”), Nicole Richie (“Workaholic”), Brooke Lynn Hytes (“Amber”), Symone (“Ayshleiygh”), Joel McHale (“Male Passenger 2”), Latrice Royale (“Barbra”), Guy Branum (“Train Traffic Controller”), Jujubee (“DeeDee”) & Marcia Marcia Marcia (“Alli”).
• Production Design (2:40)
  Director Adam Shankman and Production Designer Alessandro Marvelli discuss the look of the film and the sets. Includes behind-the-scenes footage.

Final Thoughts:

Stop! That! Train! is a fun, campy disaster film in the style of the Zucker Brothers. While not every joke lands, it’s still an entertaining ride throughout, with a great main cast consisting of mostly drag queens (who can actually act) as well as loads of hilarious cameos. Bleecker Street Media/Alliance Home Entertainment’s Blu-ray release looks and sounds great and includes some entertaining bonus material. Fans will definitely want to pick this up. For those on the fence, the film will also be streaming on Netflix starting this Sunday, September 20, if you want to check it out first before a blind buy.