The Taking of Pelham 123

The Taking of Pelham 123

Starring: Denzel Washington, John Travolta, John Turturro, James Gandolfini, Luis Guzmán

Directed by: Tony Scott

Reviewed by: Conor Flynn







Remakes are the gravy trains that keep Hollywood a-trundlin’. The film tied helplessly to the tracks this week is ‘The Taking of Pelham 123,’ a suspenseful, witty and uber cool crime caper from 1974. The original was an influence for ‘Reservoir Dogs’ directed by Quentin Tarantino i.e. referencing each criminal as a colour (such as Mr. Blue). Unlike recent remakes however, this latest effort isn’t a showcase for a new directing talent, but a veteran of action classics such as that other Tarantino scribed film; 1993’s suspenseful, witty and uber cool crime caper ‘True Romance’. So is this remake in safe hands then?

Walter Garber (Washington) is a subway dispatcher who is currently under investigation for bribery. Garber’s problems begin to mount the moment a group of hijackers, lead by Ryder (Travolta), seize subway train Pelham 123. Ryder threatens to execute the train’s passengers unless a ransom of $10 million is paid within the hour. It’s now up to Garber, with the help of Lt. Camonetti (Turturro), to negotiate the safety of the hostages…

As with all remakes, it’s hard to separate the new version from the old one. The (all new) Taking of Pelham 123 isn’t that radically different, though there are notable distinctions, for example, all the technology has been updated. Because of the latter element, a subplot has now been included which shows a hostage using a Wi-Fi connection to communicate with the outside world. Despite the technological advance, you still can’t help feeling that the central premise, in which train hostages are held to ransom, is far too old fashioned no matter how much it’s dressed up with new clothing. But that isn’t the main problem.

Gone is the superb ending to the original along with the (now over familiar) use of aliases for the hijackers. It’s certain elements such as these which made the original film work so well. The remake is a vastly inferior replica of the original which struggles to provide any new innovation in place of the better elements it has stripped away. The same can be said of the casting choices. The film co-stars John Travolta, a former Tarantino collaborator, but his over the top performance is a poor substitute for the restraint of Robert Shaw and Denzil Washington fails to deliver the spark of witty repartee shown by Walter Matthau in the original. Scott directs with his usual hyper pacing, but his style is at complete odds with the subtle storyline. His use of camerawork is incessantly distracting here. Never is this more apparent than when the camera circles around Washington like a buzzard while he stays firmly rooted to his seat.

Tony Scott delivers a so-so remake of a cult classic. It will appeal to anyone who hasn’t seen the original, but at the end of the day this remake is what it is: money for old rope.