Remakes of classic films in Hollywood can succeed if they can find a fresh creative angle while maintaining the essence of the original. Though some iconic remakes such as John Carpenter’s The Thing and Brian De Palma’s Scarface surpassed their predecessors, most remakes often fail to recapture lightning in a bottle. Where does the late Tony Scott’s remake of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three fall on that spectrum?
The 2009 blockbuster starring Denzel Washington and John Travolta is a hyper-stylized remake of Joseph Sargent’s 1974 heist thriller. Though the premise of armed men holding a train car hostage remains intact, The Taking of Pelham 123 modernizes the original story against a post-9/11 backdrop. The Scott adaptation may reach levels of absurdity that result in glaring flaws in the overall narrative. Yet, where The Taking of Pelham 123 succeeds in topping the original is an uplifting message about everyday New Yorkers taking a stand against acts of terror.
‘The Taking of Pelham 123’ Effectively Reflects a Post 9/11 Attitude
On an average day in New York City, Ryder (Travolta) and his three accomplices hijack the 6 train, separating the front car to hold hostages in exchange for $10 million plus one cent. The majority of the film unfolds as Ryder communicates over the radio with disgraced MTA big shot turned dispatcher, Walter Garber (Washington, named after Walter Matthau, who starred in the original). As the hostage-takers threaten to execute passengers if the money doesn’t arrive within an hour, Garber struggles to talk Ryder down, while Lieutenant Camonetti (John Turturro) and the Mayor (James Gandolfini), work to deliver the ransom and resolve the crisis.
The Taking of Pelham 123 notably does away with the tongue-in-cheek satire of the 1974 original. After the tragic events of 9/11, many major studio releases approached disasters and threats to American cities with far more sensitivity than in the past. The film addresses the heavy use of technological surveillance as Scott’s Enemy of the State had done previously. Additionally, it deviates from the original by emphasizing media sensationalism thanks to 24-hour news networks and the abundance of emergency response that the original did not have. Even with those themes present, however, Scott still approaches the film with a tone that fluctuates between mean-spirited and authentically New York in its endearment. For such a serious situation as a hostage crisis, Pelham still finds moments of levity, ranging from the Mayor avoiding questions about his extramarital affairs from the press to Garber’s wife (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor) demanding her husband come home with milk after stopping the villains.
Denzel Washington Plays a Rare Everyman in ‘The Taking of Pelham 123’
Beyond the MTV-style imagery and frequent camera movement, the most fascinating part of The Taking of Pelham 123 is Washington’s low-key turn as the unlikely hero in place of Matthau’s original role. The legendary Oscar-winner retains his righteous nature as a God-fearing man making ends meet for his family despite being under a bribery investigation by the MTA. But Washington’s performance is rare by being placed in a vulnerable position as an MTA train dispatcher who spends much of the film behind a booth playing cat and mouse with Travolta much like Bruce Willis and Alan Rickman in Die Hard. Yet, Garber is by no means a tough guy but a reluctant, level-headed everyman.
Related
If You Like Liam Neeson’s ‘Taken,’ Then You’ll Love This Action-Packed Denzel Washington Thriller With 89% on Rotten Tomatoes
Washington not only beat Liam Neeson to the punch but cemented his own action star status.
Where Brian Hegland’s script betrays Washington is The Taking of Pelham 123’s third act when a gun-toting Garber takes it upon himself to stop Ryder from getting away with the heist. Where the original picture had Matthau playing a transit cop, Washington’s Garber is simply an average Joe with the MTA. How he suddenly gains a rush of adrenaline to take matters into his own hands is never truly justified beyond the need to fight for his city. Similarly, the script fails to make Travolta’s Ryder a compelling bad guy. On-screen, he has fun playing his signature loud and obnoxious villain persona as seen in Broken Arrow, Face/Off, and Swordfish. But other than his obsession with stocks, religion, and hurling slick profanities reminiscent of a Quentin Tarantino script, The Taking of Pelham 123 fails to offer Travolta anything different in characterization.
As with the original film, the remake shines with a cast full of established New York actors, including Turturro, Luis Guzman, and Michael Rispoli. But it’s the late Gandolfini who gets to do his best Rudy Giuliani impression as the Mayor of NYC, restraining his usual tough-guy persona from The Sopranos to being an uptight politician trying to do the right thing while trying to earn the support of registered voters. At first, Gandolfini is depicted as overly self-centered as Lee Wallace’s living cartoon Mayor from the 1974 film. Then he makes a surprising turn once he gets actively involved in stopping the crisis to the point where he gets to figure out Ryder’s true motives before anyone else.
The Taking of Pelham 123 may not have the satirical swagger of the original. But it does retain a spirit of what it means to be New York strong in the face of real danger. Everyone from the MTA to the police and even the Mayor works together devoid of the typical Die Hard-style theatrics.
#HighStakes #Showdown #Denzel #Washington #John #Travolta #James #Gandolfini #70s #Classic #Remake
