The Taking of Pelham One Two Three

1974 actioner

Rating: 17/20

Plot: Some guys in hats and fake mustaches take a group of subway passengers hostage on a subway car and demand one million dollars for their release. One million dollars was a lot more money in 1974. For whatever reason, New York decides to let the guy who coached the Bad News Bears take care of things.

This really intelligent action picture with a witty script and cool performances from Matthau and Ben Stiller's dad is nothing but solid entertainment from beginning to end, not a single lull. There's an interesting quartet of villains, more intimidating maybe because they're anonymous and underdeveloped, and like in Reservoir Dogs, they have colors for aliases. Of course, Tarantino would never steal another movie's ideas, so that's probably just a coincidence. He's probably never even seen this movie! The script is great with the characters getting some cool one-liners without it sounding obnoxious. I also like the red herring that's thrown in there, referenced more than a few times in generally chauvinistic ways, and the little detail that winds up mattering in the end is too silly not to be completely awesome. It sets up a fantastic ending as well. This is an action movie that manages to be an action movie without much action at all. There's a scene where a car goes really fast, another scene where a guy runs a little bit, and a couple characters who get shot. Oh, and there's a bit of a shoot-out. But it's not the bombast that makes this exciting; it's the thinking required of the characters and their audience. The cinematography is plain enough to keep it all just a little bit gritty, a movie you'd be less willing to lick than a subway bathroom floor. But you will lick it and love the simplicity of the storytelling and the personality in the dialogue. Pretty brilliant stuff!