The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009)

 Maybe you remember the original version of this film with fondness. Rightly so, as that was a tense film that worked on many levels. But in 2009, the late (and dare I say: sorely missed) Tony Scott, brother to Ridley, went ahead and made his own and updated version of this story for us all to enjoy. And even though this one foregoes the suspense for a more action oriented take, it is still a damn entertaining film.

Denzel Washington is Walter Garber, an employee at the subway company in New York. He has been demoted pending some investigation and he is now just a controller at a desk, making sure the trains are running as smooth as can be. But things take a turn for the worst (and most interesting) when one of the trains is hijacked by a couple of men, whose motives are shady to say the least. Not to mention that their apparent motives aren't their true motives, if you get where I'm coming from. They demand 10 million dollars or else they will start shooting passengers. Now Garber is the main channel through which the hijackers, and more importantly their leader Ryder, will talk. Heck, you know at one point someone else will try to talk to Ryder and shit will hit the fan. And it does. Ryder feels a connection with Garber and through conversation, they get closer to one another, at least if you can call it that. 

Even though this film does have some action (the scene where the police car has to get across town in time to deliver the money, is pretty tense), but this is not really where the film's strength lies. It is the wordplay and interaction between Denzel Washington and a deliciously vicious John Travolta that makes this worth a watch. Especially Travolta is a lot of fun to behold. He is a total douchebag, but he plays it with so much gusto, it becomes fairly hard to dislike him. 

Sure, he's a dick, but somehow a likable dick, if such a thing even exists. 

Yes, you get the rest of the clichés, such as Denzel's boss who is a prick, and a fairly boring role for John Turturro as a police negotiator, but then you also get a gleefully fun mayor, played by the late James Gandolfini, who is clearly having a blast with it. Like I said, it's the main characters and their interaction that makes this so engaging. Visually, this is one of those Tony Scott-films, in that it all has that slick feel any one of his works has. If you have seen films like 'Top Gun' or 'The Last Boyscout', you'll know what I mean. Tony never went for a deep story, but he sure as hell made everything always look perfect and with that visual flair that is all his own. 

Yes, oftentimes people made it out as if Tony was the 'lesser' of the Scott Brothers, but Ridley and Tony have a totally different style, yet they are both masters of their craft. 

Is it a world-shattering sensation this film? No. For that, it is a little mundane and not nearly as tense as the Walther Matthau-film of the same name from the 70s. But it sure as hell is a lot of fun to watch.