The Taking of Pelham 123

Went to watch The Taking of Pelham 123 with Daryl yesterday at Vivo. The review and synopsis are as follows.

Tony Scott directs this remake of the original 1974 "The Taking Of Pelham 123" where Subway train Pelham 123 becomes the focal point of an audacious terrorist attack. A subway dispatcher (Denzel Washington) goes against a group of hijackers lead by Ryder (John Travolta), that take over a subway train in order to obtain a hefty ransom. The ransom must reach them within an hour or they'll start killing the hostages in the train.

The storyline of this movie is rather straightforward but the director keeps us engaged in the thriller with the experienced cast and fluid storytelling. Denzel Washington is impressive as the dispatcher who keeps his cool despite the different verbal aggravations imposed onto him, while John Travolta has a similarly strong run in his role as the psychotic and manic hijacker who kills without blinking an eye.

The two male leads meet head to head in a nailbiting climatic chase and they form the crux of this thriller with their good dramatization and character development. Two thumbs up for the good acting as well as the high thrill factor.

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