Critical response
Variety deemed the film "competent" in a mildly positive review, while Ebert gave the film one out of four stars, writing: "The classic horror films of the 1930s appealed to the intelligence of its audiences, to their sense of humor and irony. Movies like Terror Train, and all of its sordid predecessors and its rip-offs still to come, just don't care. They're a series of sensations, strung together on a plot. Any plot will do. Just don't forget the knife, and the girl, and the blood". However, he conceded that "it's not a rock-bottom-budget, schlock exploitation film". Ed Blank of the Pittsburgh Press criticized the film for its lack of characterization, saying the movie was not as good as its "neat" title.
A review in the Los Angeles Times praised the film's atmosphere and characterized it as scary. Richard Corliss of Time also praised the film's style, calling it "sleek and eerie". Bill Kelley of the Fort Lauderdale News was critical of the film's illogical plot developments and clichés, but ultimately deemed it "a respectable (if that's the word) exploitation movie". Jacqi Tully of the Arizona Daily Star wrote a similarly favourable review of the film, praising it for its pacing, setting, performances, and Copperfield's magic tricks. Writing for the Statesman Journal, Ron Cowan commended the cinematography and noted that although the film started poorly, it had some thrills near its end.
At the 8th Saturn Awards, Terror Train was nominated for Best International Film, losing to Scanners (1981), while Curtis was nominated for Best Actress, losing to Angie Dickinson for Dressed to Kill. At the 2nd Genie Awards, Terror Train was nominated for Best Achievement in Art Direction (Glenn Bydwell), Best Achievement in Overall Sound (David Appleby and Bo Harwood), and Best Music Score (John Mills-Cockell).
Rolling Stone dismissed the film but singled out its cast and crew, noting the "marquee talent" of Copperfield, Johnson, Spottiswoode, Alcott, and Vanity, each of whom "went on to better things." AllMovie praised Alcott's cinematography, but concluded Terror Train is middling and only of interest to devoted slasher film fans, while Time Out London said it was better than other films of its type. A review in Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide concurred, claiming that the "stylish photography and the novelty of the killer donning the costume of each successive victim lift this slightly above most in this disreputable genre," granting the film two out of four stars.
Paul Lê of Bloody Disgusting wrote Terror Train is an imperfect film with dull murder sequences. However, he felt the film's strengths outweighed its flaws, praising Copperfield's role. Film scholar Adam Rockoff praised the film for being stylish and atmospheric. Horror fiction scholar John Kenneth Muir also praised the film in his book Horror Films of the 1980s: "The thrill of a picture like Terror Train is the shrewd manner in which it plays against audience expectations; the sense that the slasher film paradigm gives it parameters which it can then undercut, subvert, and if needs be, violate". Zachary Paul of Bloody Disgusting said Terror Train is not as acclaimed as other slasher films starring Curtis, but deemed it a personal favourite. Paul praised the film's suspenseful third act and twist ending, adding that slasher fans should seek out the movie. Patrick Fogerty of Collider deemed Terror Train the most fun and subversive 1980s teen slasher movie. He praised it for having intelligent characters, as well as the racially diverse casting of Sherwood and Vanity. Terror Train is considered a cult classic.
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, Terror Train holds a 47% approval rating based on 17 critic reviews, with an average rating of 5.1/10. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 42 out of 100, based on 9 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.
