The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)
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The Taking of Pelham One Two Three Movie Review
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three is a 1974 thriller film directed by Joseph Sargent and starring Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw. It’s a solid, but far from great flick.
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“Yeah, well, that’s the difference between you and me.
I’ve always done my own killing“
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It follows the hijacking of a train by terrorists who ask for money or they’ll start shooting the hostages. Needless to say, this is a very standard procedure and by that I mean that it’s such a simple premise and the execution is mostly overly simplistic that the film ended up being too familiar, too typical and lacking complexity to it.
I also did not find its thriller elements all too compelling. Yes, there are a couple of scenes here that are genuinely chilly and immensely memorable, especially that line about execution and the subsequent killing, but for the most part the movie is overly slow and not as thrilling or as intense as it needed to have been.
The acting is serviceable and everyone did a fine job, but most actors and their characters are very forgettable with only a couple of them standing out from the crowd. Of course those two are the stars Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw who both gave terrific performances and the character interactions between the two steal the show for sure. So well done.
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three has a weird, overly complicated movie title, but it does make use of its setting solidly. ‘Speed’ is a better flick when it comes to these simple premise films as that movie utilized its premise to the fullest extent, but this one is solid in that regard, but rarely truly exceptional or truly iconic.
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The direction is weak and unprofessional, but the performances are strong as I said above and the film is well shot and very well scored with a score that is thrilling and quite intense. I just wished that it was used more as it was so good. The dialogue is also realistic and quite strong, but I did find its somewhat slow pacing problematic as the movie needed more action and a brisker pace.
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three definitely has its standout, superbly conceived sequences plus it’s very well acted and scored as well, but it’s never as thrilling or as intense as it should have been owing to a sluggish pace, not enough action and an overly simplistic execution of an already very simple premise.
