Starring Denzel Washington, John Travolta, John Turturro, Luis Guzman, and James Gandolfini
Written by Brian Helgeland
Directed by Tony Scott
Written by Brian Helgeland
Directed by Tony Scott
A remake of a 70s flick, this updated thriller stays surprisingly fresh, in large part due to a very strong performance from Denzel Washington.
Washington is Walter Garber who has a job similar to an air traffic controller, but for the New York City subway system. Unfortunately for him, a group of guys headed by John Travolta's character Ryder decide to hijack subway train Pelham 123 and hold its passengers hostage.
There's nothing new here. It's a typical hostage situation movie, but Washington really raises the bar and makes it interesting. His character has an intriguing backstory that comes into play that adds an additional bit of depth to an otherwise straightforward character. Travolta isn't bad either and I really don't care for him typically at all. In fact, I would say he could be in my Top Five Least Favorite Actors. I find him very disingenuous in both real life and onscreen. That wasn't the case here, though. I actually found him quite good and shockingly believable as a bad guy.
I must admit that I'm a sucker for movies that happen in "real time" and that was certainly a plus here. The tension stays high throughout because of this. I glanced at director Tony Scott's imdb page and I realized that I actually liked quite a bit of his films (Enemy of the State, Deja Vu). It's not like he's a great auteur, but I tend to like the way he films things despite the fact that he's a little too spastic and quick-cut-happy for his own good. This film was a little more subdued...no real shaky-camminess here.
My major issue with the film is that once the film leaves the confines of the subway car in the final 30 minutes, it falls apart a little. A huge part of the climax hinges on a ridiculous coincidence that kind of ticked me off and ruined the end.
That being said, there are certainly worse movies out there and this one was a perfectly acceptable, somewhat exciting flick.
Washington is Walter Garber who has a job similar to an air traffic controller, but for the New York City subway system. Unfortunately for him, a group of guys headed by John Travolta's character Ryder decide to hijack subway train Pelham 123 and hold its passengers hostage.
There's nothing new here. It's a typical hostage situation movie, but Washington really raises the bar and makes it interesting. His character has an intriguing backstory that comes into play that adds an additional bit of depth to an otherwise straightforward character. Travolta isn't bad either and I really don't care for him typically at all. In fact, I would say he could be in my Top Five Least Favorite Actors. I find him very disingenuous in both real life and onscreen. That wasn't the case here, though. I actually found him quite good and shockingly believable as a bad guy.
I must admit that I'm a sucker for movies that happen in "real time" and that was certainly a plus here. The tension stays high throughout because of this. I glanced at director Tony Scott's imdb page and I realized that I actually liked quite a bit of his films (Enemy of the State, Deja Vu). It's not like he's a great auteur, but I tend to like the way he films things despite the fact that he's a little too spastic and quick-cut-happy for his own good. This film was a little more subdued...no real shaky-camminess here.
My major issue with the film is that once the film leaves the confines of the subway car in the final 30 minutes, it falls apart a little. A huge part of the climax hinges on a ridiculous coincidence that kind of ticked me off and ruined the end.
That being said, there are certainly worse movies out there and this one was a perfectly acceptable, somewhat exciting flick.
The RyMickey Rating: B-
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