The Taking of Pelham 123
2009-06-12
By Sergio A. Mims
CAST: Denzel Washington
John Travolta
John Turturro
Luis Guzman
James Gandolfini
WRITTEN BY: Brian Helgeland
DIRECTED BY: Tony Scott
** TWO STARS
One can’t really discuss Denzel Washington’s and John Travolta’s new thriller The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3 without comparing it to the original 1974 version with Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw, one of the seminal action suspense thrillers of the 1970’s.
Unfortunately this new 21st century version is instantly forgettable, a routine potboiler which,despite some clever updating and plot changes, can’t hold a candle to the film it’s based on.
Where the ‘74 version was suspenseful, wickedly cynical, even funny, this new version seems unable to do any single thing right, down to the generic and mind-numbing, pseudo hip-hop film score.
The fourth film together for director Tony Scott and Denzel Washington (Déjà Vu, Crimson Tide, Man on Fire), Pelham retains Scott’ his trademark frantic visual technique, throwing every trick on the screen from freeze frames to big bold titles ticking away the minutes until the fatal deadline. But it’s all to no effect, a desperate attempt to generate suspense when there is none. The result is a film that is overly obvious and simplistic.
As with the original the stage is the New York subway, where a violent, ruthless team of criminals led by Travolta (Shaw in the 74 film) hijack a train car and take the passengers hostage for a ransom. Tight dark spaces, a runaway train, authentic New York Streets (not Toronto), kidnapping, minutes to save the day, all the best elements for a thrill ride, right? Not so much.
Washington plays Garber, a former head honcho in the New York transit system demoted to dispatcher over accusations of malfeasance, a smart twist from the original. Travolta, of course, has more than just money on his mind and he and Washington play a psychological cat and mouse game as seconds tick away. It’s that back and forth that’s supposed to provide the context for the action. But the mind games and the chaotic edits come off as disconnected.
Washington is good in the film, though it’s far from a demanding role for him. By contrast Travolta is simply awful, giving another one of his way-over-the-top villain performances. That approach in the past as worked well, as when he played the foil in John Woo’s films Face/Off and Broken Arrow. But in Pelham he’s broken loose from the moorings, clearly straining for effect and wildly spouting some of the worst dialogue in the film. He’s a poor substitute for Robert Shaw’s coolly sinister and tightly wound bad guy.
By all means you should see Pelham – the original. The new version is harmless entertainment, but doesn’t show Washington, Travolta or Tony Scott at their best.
Film critic, lecturer and festival consultant Sergio Mims covers all things film from the city that works, Chicago. He is a regular contributor to EbonyJet.com.
