The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) Rating: 5.0 stars out of 5.0 stars
Cast: Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam, Hector Elizondo, Earl Hindeman, James Broderick, Dick O'Neill, Jerry Stiller, Kenneth McMillan, Tony Roberts Written by: Peter Stone Based on the novel by: John Godey Directed by: Joseph Sargent Running Time: 104 minutes
This early precursor to Die Hard stars Walter Matthau (that's right, he's the Bruce Willis character) as the transit chief of security for the New York subway system, who must contend with a group of terrorists (led by Robert Shaw, in a ruthless performance) who have hijacked a subway train. The hijacking essentially shuts down the entire subway system, and Shaw demands one million dollars to release the train and his hostages. If his demands are not met, one hostage will be killed every minute.
Filled with tense situations and some very funny dialogue, The Taking of Pelham One Two Three is one of the best films of the 70s. The thing is... you ask anyone about this movie and no one has ever heard of it! Matthau gets the best lines as the frumpy, worn down transit chief... although everyone in the film has a darkly comedic foul attitude that makes for some great dialogue conversations (much like how all the characters in Conspiracy Theory were on edge about something or other). In addition to Matthau and Shaw, the rest of the superb cast is filled out with familiar faces from the 70s. Also the film has one of those ridiculously catchy 70s scores, making the soundtrack album a must own.
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three is available on DVD from MGM Home Entertainment. The disc contains the film in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and features the original theatrical trailer. Also included with the disc itself is a color booklet featuring materials from the original press kit. Only fault I have with this DVD package: the running time listed on the disc and on the case says 124 minutes... why are studios always getting this wrong? Other than that I have no REAL complaints, as this is a great DVD release of a great forgotten movie. [R]
Chuck Dowling - chuckd21@fdn.com AOL Instant Messenger: FilmJax The Jacksonville Film Journal - http://www.jaxfilmjournal.com/
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