Review of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) by Elliot N — 21 Aug 2011

Joseph Sergeant's 1974 classic got a 21st century makeover just a few years ago, in other words, they increased the ransom demanded, crashed more cars, killed more people and gave John Travolta the role as the main hijacker. Clearly Joseph Sergeants 1974 classic is better in every significant way. Taking of Pelham One Two Three went on to inspire the names of Quentin Tarantino's characters in Reservoir Dogs.

Based on the 1973 novel by John Godley Taking of Pelham One Two Three (not 123) concerns four men hijacking a subway train and demanding $1,000,000 dollars. They also demand that the money should be collected and paid within the hour. If these demands are not met the hijackers will kill one person for each minute that the money is late. Lt Zachery Garber (Walter Matthau). has been asked to negotiate with the hijackers is Lt Zachery Garber (Walter Matthau).

Taking of Pelham One Two Three is just as nitty, gritty and tense as the best action movies during cinema's golden age, namely The French Connection and Dirty Harry (both 1971) rank as the best action movies of those golden years. Taking of Pelham One Two Three is as 70s action movies go, fantastic fun. It's a typical 1970s action movie stereotypical, racist and sexist, though nothing worth getting worked up about. One of greatest factors of Taking of Pelham One Two Three is the quietly intense performance of the wonderful Robert Shaw as Mr. Blue. Robert Shaw's performance is a dominant one, he demands authority, he quietly, with a menacing growl in his voice, orders the passengers of the hijacked train around and they instantly obey him. With some cracking lines of dialogue 'I could kill every single one of you before you got any closer to me from where you are standing now' Robert Shaw's character, Mr. Blue, authority is not to be questioned. Robert Shaw, for me, makes this film, he has a talent for playing cracking villains, for example take From Russia With Love he played a charming, charismatic and ruthless killer who almost fooled Bond himself. It is Robert Shaw's finest performance but Jaws and From Russia With Love are proving to be strong competition. Robert Shaw's performance is a complete contrast to Travolta, who shouts, swears and spits and delivers an abysmal performance, Robert Shaw is a far more powerful and dominant screen presence then Travolta ever will be, this is clearly evident in Taking of Pelham One Two Three as Shaw bosses the screen in every scene he is in. The performances of the fellow hijackers are less intense but serviceable and Walter Matthau is great as Lt Zachery Garber.

Taking of Pelham One Two Three is just as tense as The French Connection and Dirty Harry (but the later two the far superior). The discussions between Mr. Blue and Garber are gripping and both actors are sensational together and share a great chemistry even though they rarely share the same screen. However, amongst all this seriousness and tension of this 1970s classic action movie is even a spot of comedy, and low and behold its actually funny. The script, unlike a shed load of the most recent action movies, is full of wit, irony and hilarious one liners. One bloke asks who is going to steal and subway train anyway (while a subway train is being hijacked) and the mayor's wife replies 'eighteen sure votes' when the flu ridden mayor (who has the most laughs) asks what would get in return paying the ransom demanded and a hilarious scene in which Garber is entertaining some Japanese guests under the impression that they do not speak a word of English. It's nice to see a spot of comedy mix perfectly together with the serious and tense aspects, only once every so often does it work quite as well as it did in Taking of Pelham One Two Three.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three benefits greatly from Joseph Sergeant's steady hand and his approach to straightforward, simple story telling. There are no confusing and pointless subplots but just one story about a hijacked train that is told in a simple but great way in a way action movies should be told. The simplicity in the approach to the story makes The Taking of Pelham One Two Three one of the many hidden gems of 1970's cinema which is dominated by The Godfather, Taxi Driver and Chinatown (to name a few). The Taking of Pelham One Two Three tries to poke it's head above the high seas of quality productions in the 1970s. Yet The Taking of Pelham One Two Three is not flawless, the hostages are without a doubt the most irritating group of people on the planet, not one of them are likeable. You almost want Robert Shaw to spray the bullets into every single one of them. The screaming women is possibly the most annoying of the lot but yet taking of Pelham is not really about them its about the hijackers and the discussions with those attempting to compromise and save the lives of those on board, that is where Taking of Pelham shines.

Joseph Sergeants The Taking of Pelham One Two Three has grown to be a classic of the genre, of course it's not on a par which the likes of Die Hard (the first one), The French Connection and Dirty Harry but The Taking of Pelham One Two Three is entertaining, fast and furious in the only way 1970s action movies can be. For fans of the genre it is essential viewing and superior to the mess that was the bland 21st century remake. Helped greatly by Robert Shaw's tremendous, quiet but very menacing performance The Taking of Pelham One Two Three is fine action movie making. A classic thriller.