The Taking of Pelham 123 Movie Reviews

Judged purely on its own merit, and independent of comparisons to the 1974 original starring Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw, Tony Scott's remake of The Taking of Pelham 123 is a pretty engaging thriller. John Travolta stars as a suitably over-the-top criminal mastermind, who hijacks a New York subway train full of passengers, and demands a 10 million dollar ransom. Threatening to bump off passengers one by one if the money doesn't get to him in an hour

Pelham was originally adapted for screen from John Godey's novel in 1974 - for the classic Joseph Sargent helmed dramatic thriller showcasing Walter Mathau and Robert Shaw ably supported by a tension defining composition by David Shire. There's been a TV adaptation in 1998 and now director Tony Scott has screenwriter Brian Helgeland renegotiating the same beaten track for some hi-tech supported purchase. But this film finds it hard to live up to the nostalgia-driven infallibility of the ...