5 Star

The Audacious Heist Movie!

From the pen of Morton Freedgood (pen name John Godey. Never Put Off Till Tomorrow What You Can Kill Today) comes the film of the same name, that was so good there have been two remakes. (But never surpassed in my view). Directed by Joseph Sargent (Jaws: The Revenge, Colossus: The Forbin Project) who takes a raw, and stripped bare approach to a heist movie. It was made in the 70s, for the 70s. So, be aware that this is an offensive, sexist movie of the time. It’s a brutal look at the hostage situation.

In the busy metropolis of New York, the transit system moves nearly four million people per day, a system that never stops, it has its own police force that deals with every conceivable type of crime per day, but hijacking a subway train is definitely not one of them.

What’s the matter with everybody? How many hijacked trains we got around here, anyway?

As Pelham one, two, three makes its way under New York City, picking the thousands of commuters to their daily jobs and their busy lives. In amongst these thousand four men in trench coats, hats, glasses and a moustache, they are also carrying flower boxes. 

These four men are Mr Blue (Robert Shaw, Jaws, A Man for All Seasons), a man with a regimented demeanor, Mr Green (Martin Balsam, 12 Angry Men, 12 Angry Men, Psycho) a  guy suffering from a heavy cold , Mr Grey (Hector Elizondo, Pretty Woman, Beverly Hills Cop III), a man that has been kicked out of Mafia, for being too eratic, and Mr Brown (Earl Hindman, Silverado, Home Improvement (TV Series)), who watches the backs of the other three.

When the train pulls into a station Mr Blue has a word with the driver, while Mr Grey has a word with the conductor, these actions lead to the gang of four taking over the train, without any of the passengers realizing. But they are made well aware when the four pull out automatic weapons.

They contact the New York City Transit Police, where lieutenant Zachary Garber (Walter Matthau, A New Leaf, Charade) is running the show with Lt. Rico Patrone (Jerry Stiller, Hairspray, Zoolander).

 

I’m warnin’ you, mister, that’s city property you’re fooling around with! Why didn’t you go grab a goddamn airplane like everybody else?

The hijackers demand one million dollars for the safe return of the eighteen passengers in the front car that they have disconnected from the rest of the train.

“Gesundheit”

The race is on to save the innocent passengers, whether that’s by S.W.A.T. or weighing up the price of each passenger against the one-million dollars. I wouldn’t want to be the Mayor that has to make that decision, especially when  there is less than an hour to go before Mr Blue starts shooting them.

Somebody down there knows how to drive a train. You don’t pick that up watching Sesame Street.

This is the original and the best (In my opinion), but the 70s were a different time and the attitudes were different too, so expect racism, sexism and a few other “isms”.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three Limited Edition 4K UHD [Blu-ray] [Region Free] is available now.

 

4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS

• 4K restoration from the original camera negative
• 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Original lossless mono audio
• Optional lossless 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio remix
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Audio commentary by film historians Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson
• Audio commentary by actor/filmmaker Pat Healy and film programmer/historian Jim Healy
• The Mapping of Pelham One Two Three – brand new “then and now” tour of the film’s locations by critic Bryan Reesman, featuring Jodi Shapiro, curator of the New York Transit Museum
• Central to Pelham One Two Three – brand new filmed appreciation by Barry Forshaw, author of American Noir
• 12 Minutes with Mr. Grey and Shades of Grey – two interviews with actor Hector Elizondo
• Cutting on Action – 2016 interview with editor Gerald B. Greenberg
• The Sound of the City – 2016 interview with composer David Shire
• Above and Below – 2018 interview with director of photography Owen Roizman
• Taking the Ride – 2018 featurette exploring the film’s New York City locations
• The Making of Pelham One Two Three – vintage production featurette from the point of view of real-life New York City transit policeman Carmine Foresta
• Theatrical trailer
• TV spot
• Radio spots
• Image and poster gallery
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sam Hadley
• Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Priscilla Page, Glenn Kenny, Mark Cunliffe and Guy Adams