The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)
Directed by Joseph Sargent. Based on the novel by John Godey. An exceptional suspense-thriller, PELHAM is basically the hijacking of a NYC subway train and its subsequent ransom. Robert Shaw is the lead baddie, Mr. Blue. Martin Balsam, Hector Elizondo, and Earl Hindman round out the group as Mr. Green, Mr. Grey, and Mr. Brown, respectively (yes, Quentin Tarantino apparently did get that idea from this film). Charged with solving the crisis is Walter Matthau as Lt. Gerber, a transit system cop. The immutable deadline for the ransom provides most of the suspense, as the rest of the city races to meet the demands before the hijackers kill one hostage for every minute that the money's late. Some of the overt racism and sexism in the film gives pause, but it's all for verisimilitude, which does the trick of drawing you in and getting you caught up in the suspense.
Tagline: We are going to kill one passenger a minute until New York City pays us one million dollars.
Highlights: The acting, naturally. The actual NYC locations. Those little touches of realism mentioned before. The continually increasing suspense. The misdirections. The train passengers, listed in the credits as "The Hooker," "The Homosexual," "The Secretary," etc.
Tagline: We are going to kill one passenger a minute until New York City pays us one million dollars.
Highlights: The acting, naturally. The actual NYC locations. Those little touches of realism mentioned before. The continually increasing suspense. The misdirections. The train passengers, listed in the credits as "The Hooker," "The Homosexual," "The Secretary," etc.
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