The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
by Tony Scott
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Denzel Washington, John Travolta, Luis Guzmán, Robert Vataj, Victor GojcajDirector: Tony Scott
Brand: Son
Producer: Anson Downes
Producer: Barry H. Waldman
Producer: Don Ferrarone
Producer: Jason Blumenthal
Producer: John Wildermuth
Writer: Brian Helgeland
Writer: John Godey
DVD: Region Code 99
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language); French (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.40:1
Running Time: 106 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2009-11-03
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Movie Reviews of The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
Movie Review: The Taking of Pelham 123
Summary: 5 Stars
Reviewing remakes of films that where well-received in their original release is quite a challenge. It is also a daunting idea to remake a movie that was well-made in its first treatment. Any way you look at it, it can be a trap for any party involved. That is precisely the case with "The Taking of Pelham 123," a film that originally came out in 1974. For this reason, purposely ignoring the first version, I will review the 2009 film. That said, I found this new installment exciting and gripping, which is what entertainment is all about.
Walter Garber (Denzel Washington) is a subway dispatcher who works in the control center of New City's midtown subway system. He is having a good day, that is, until he notices irregular activities in the traffic board. He receives a phone call by an individual who says, "This is the man who is going to rock this city. This is the man who is going to give the city a run for its money." We then learn that the man is Ryder (John Travolta), and that he has kidnapped a train car from the Pelham 123 route. Ryder and his assistants, turns out, are merciless killers that do not hesitate to pull the trigger to get what they want; in this case, they are asking for a ten million dollar ransom. So, as you can expect, this creates a difficult and volatile situation. It doesn't help that Garber also has his own issues that affect the resolution of the conflict, which, in way, also becomes a fight for his life.
As any movie directed by Tony Scott (Spy Game, Domino, Déjà vu), "The Taking of Pelham 123" is flashy and fast, with trendy use of technology and cinematography, which is precisely one of the differences between the 1974 version from the 2009 one - and that's where my comparison begins and ends. It is action-packed and will keep you glued to your seat until the very end. The DVD also features commentaries by the director, writer Brian Helgeland and producer Todd Black; making-of documentary; New York underground documentary; and more. (USA / UK. 2009, color, 106 min plus additional materials). Reviewed by Eric Gonzalez from [...] on November 3, 2009 for Columbia Pictures.
Summary of The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
No description available for this title.Item Type: DVD Movie
Item Rating: R
Street Date: 11/03/09
Wide Screen: yes
Director Cut: no
Special Edition: no
Language: ENGLISH
Foreign Film: noSubtitles: no
Dubbed: no
Full Frame: no
Re-Release: no
Packaging: Sleeve
John Godey's 1973 novel The Taking of Pelham One Two Three boasts a suspense situation so surefire that even the directorial bad habits of Tony Scott can't ruin this latest movie version. Four armed men seize a New York City subway train, isolate one car, and threaten to start killing passengers if a ransom isn't paid within the hour. The ransom was a million dollars in the book and also in Joseph Sargent's solid 1974 movie, in which Robert Shaw played the mercenary leading the hostage takers and Walter Matthau was the growling transit cop trying to outsmart him. In 2009, the title has gone digital--The Taking of Pelham 123--and inflation has jumped the asking price to $10 million. Where Shaw's menace was steely, John Travolta opts for manic, and shamelessly has a blast in the master villain role. His adversary, cagily underplayed by Denzel Washington, has been upgraded in civil-service rank but also demoted on suspicion of taking a bribe. This colors the dynamics of the dialogue between Washington at his control-center console and Travolta on the motorman's microphone aboard the stalled train.
So far, so reasonably good. But the director's trademark tactics keep getting between, well, everything. From the get-go, the visuals are subjected to pointless and irritating stutter effects, speeding-up/slowing-down, gratuitous camera movement, and the interposition of dirt- or light-smeared panes of glass between the camera and people we'd appreciate a clear look at. The 1974 movie settled for one police car being wrecked as the ransom is rushed uptown; Scott requires multiple collisions, each the occasion for police cruisers taking Lethal Weapon-style flight. The hostages in the earlier film were wittily individuated, a multicultural group portrait of the city at that mid-'70s moment; the ones on Scott's train--and also Travolta's fellow perpetrators, including that wonderful character actor Luis Guzmán--barely register. On the upside, John Turturro and James Gandolfini shine as two guys who (like the actors themselves) are very good at their jobs?respectively playing a hostage negotiator and His Honor, the mayor. The screenplay by Brian Helgeland (L.A. Confidential, Mystic River) strives intelligently, if formulaically, to add new dimensions to the main characters and to offer its own gloss on the current economic meltdown. --Richard T. Jameson
Stills from The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (Click for larger image)
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