The Finishing Line

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The Finishing Line is a short film produced in 1977 by British Transport Films, warning about the dangers children face on railway lines. Although it is not strictly a public information film, it is often considered to be so by fans of the genre. It was broadcast in its entirety several times on television, but was so controversial that it was replaced less than two years later by the slightly less graphic Robbie. It won at least two creative awards: Certificate of Appreciation (Top Category) and Oberhausen Mention at the Festival of Youth Paris. The film was also shown in several schools by invitation. It was directed by John Krish and filmed in the vicinity of the then-closed Watton-at-Stone railway station, Hertfordshire.

[edit] Plot

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The film begins with a young boy walking to school. As he passes a railway bridge, he considers the idea of holding an Olympic Games - style sports event on the railway line. The rest of the film shows his imagined idea of what would happen, with children being split into competitive teams to take part in different activities often carried out by young people trespassing on the railway. Three "games" are held, in which the children are challenged to break through the fence surrounding the railway line, play "chicken" with the trains and throw things at passing trains. Each time we see the tragic consequences of these activities, such as one scene where a driver's face is shredded by broken glass after a child throws a brick through the train window. The final task is for the children to run through a tunnel, but after they enter, we see a train approaching. A small boy emerges at the other end and declares himself the winner, before collapsing. The film finishes as a group of adults appear and go into the tunnel to carry out the bodies of their dead and injured children, which are then laid out in a long line along the railway track.