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Author Topic: Taking of Pelham 1-2-3 (2009) Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-13-2009 07:23 PM                        I have not seen the original, but thought that the remake was basically decent. It was not original at all, but the action scenes were competently done. It works well as disposable entertainment. It is not art (nor does it pretend to be) and will not be remembered in ten years.  |  IP: Logged Chris Slycord Film God Posts: 2986 From: 청주시, 경북도, South Korea Registered: Mar 2007 posted 07-13-2009 11:11 PM                     quote: Scott Norwood It was not original I wonder why?  |  IP: Logged Craig Duncanson Film Handler Posts: 5 From: Dundee, Tayside, Scotland Registered: Sep 2008 posted 07-28-2009 05:27 PM                     Well, it opens here tomorrow. Pre-booking not great.  |  IP: Logged Phil Blake Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 558 From: esperance western australia Registered: Nov 2003 posted 08-27-2009 12:29 AM                        Roadtested this one yesterday, I did not quite fall asleep but came close. This I thought had very thin plot and just dwelled on the wrongs and rights of big crook vs little crook. I thought Denzel was ok, Hated watching half the movie or what seemed like it in slow motion and the spinning camera actions were very distracting. sound mix on DTS was quite good. 2 out of 5 from me.  |  IP: Logged Sally Ann Burgess Expert Film Handler Posts: 120 From: Queenstown, New Zealand Registered: Apr 2008 posted 09-04-2009 02:16 AM                     Test screened this morning. Was a bit too flashily done I think but I like John Travolta in almost anything. And I was a bit distracted by the little emulsion cross scratches right down the centre of the print because I was trying to figure how they got there! Anyway I digress. 6/10 from me.  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 09-04-2009 04:14 AM                        Saw the original a few weeks ago. Wow. I think. The main bad guy just casually kills himself for no reason. Bad guy - "Can I give you some money to let me go?" Walter Matthau - "No." Bad guy - "OK then. I think I will calmly fry myself on these electric rails. I don't want to put too much effort into this scene as I must save up all of my acting gusto for JAWS." Walter Matthau - "K. See ya." Such a gripping confrontation! I bet the audiences in the 70's were on the edge of their non-cupholder, non-reclining seats!  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 09-04-2009 06:33 PM                        Well that isn't really the climax of the movie though. The climax is earlier, when the train won't stop, and later, when you think Hector E. just might be going to get away with it. The bad guy killing himself is casually alluded to early in the movie when Hector (the guy with the cold) says, "I'm gonna die today," and Robert Shaw says "That's entirely possible" and just gives him a look, which indicates he really DOESN'T have any cares about life or death. I like that death scene because you know he's going to bite it, but it's a surprise how and when it happens. I haven't seen the new version, but if they were going to recreate that scene in 2009, I would guess the bad guy would've jumped on a passing subway train (going 60 mph) and then the good guy would pump a handcar as hard as he could and catch up, while riddling the bad guy with machine gun fire.  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 09-04-2009 06:39 PM                        Ha ha no. It's not that cool. But it involve guns, of course.  |  IP: Logged Tim Reed Better Projection Pays Posts: 5246 From: Northampton, PA Registered: Sep 1999 posted 09-06-2009 06:53 PM                       quote: Joe non-reclining seats! You're forgetting Grigg's pushback seats... standard in all General Cinema and Redstone theatres throughout the 60s and 70s.  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 09-06-2009 07:12 PM                        I know what you are talking about. Comfortable they weren't!  |  IP: Logged Frank Angel Film God Posts: 5305 From: Brooklyn NY USA Registered: Dec 1999 posted 09-14-2009 10:50 AM                        Century Theatres here in NYC and the suburbs (they were a dominant chain here at the time, mostly big, plush first run theatres with flagships in each of the boroughs, cept maybe Staten Island) all had very comfortable recliner chairs. You pushed against the back and the seat slid forward and the back reclined slightly. Very comfortable. And that was back in the mid-50s.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 09-17-2009 12:21 AM                        quote: Frank Angel You pushed against the back and the seat slid forward and the back reclined slightly. Very comfortable. And that was back in the mid-50s. My theatre had five rows of those seats. They were quite comfortable. I think they were used when they were installed -- not sure where they came from, but they were definitely at the end of their rope. We replaced them in '83 I think.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-16-2009 11:31 AM                        Well since the original Pelham is one of my favorite movies, I finally watched the new one on DVD last night, since we didn't play it over the summer. I didn't hate it as much as I thought I would, but I agree with pretty much everything said in this thread. Language was too over the top, the Travolta character was too unbelieveable, his partners-in-crime had almost nothing to do in the story, etc. The characters in the dispatch office had WAY more personality in the old movie, too. The most annoying scene was the climactic part at the end where Denzel had John T. at gunpoint and kept yelling "HEY!" at the horde of police officers who were running toward him at top speed, and who kept being shown never getting any closer. I also was hoping Denzel's wife would get killed by somebody, just because he was in a life threatening situation and all she cared about was her stupid gallon of milk. That scene was considered so good, they even included it in the trailers, but it was probably the stupidest part of the whole movie. The other most annoying thing was all the beeping and squeaking of every single computer screen anytime a number would display. Why do movie makers insist on doing this? And why does every computer in the universe emit the same annoying beeping sounds? I did like the Mayor character better in this version. In the old one, he was comic relief but he was really TOO idiotic. In this version, he was the most believeable major character in the whole movie along with Denzel. Overall, I would say 1.5 out of 5 stars from me. It gets an extra half star for being in scope.  |  IP: Logged John Hawkinson Film God Posts: 2273 From: Cambridge, MA, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 12-23-2009 09:57 AM                     Gosh, it's been a while. I thought the milk was intended as her way of trying to get him to stay calm and take it one step at a time, and remember his family without too much stress. I thought it was kind of a cute gag. I don't think it was meant to suggest that was all she cared about. --jhawk  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-23-2009 01:39 PM                        Well - I've been married for 10 years and I can tell you, if I was in a life threatening situation and had my wife on the phone, the absolute last thing on her mind would be asking me to pick up groceries on the way home. It is just too silly.  |  IP: Logged

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