The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

Plot Outline: In New York, four armed men hijack a subway carriage and threaten to kill the hostages unless they are paid a hefty ransom. A veteran NY transit cop is given the task of negotiating with the hijackers whilst a way is found to stop them.

The Review: Long before Tarantino's Mr Blonde and co. came along in Reservoir Dogs, Robert Shaw and his band of hijackers were doing the colour-coded thing in this cracking crime thriller. It's dated pretty badly since 1974 - take one look at the multi-ethnic train carriage complete with every racial stereotype in the book to find out proof - but still manages to hold the tension when it needs to. New York in the 70s wasn't a pretty place to be and this film portrays the city as a drab, colourless place with a bleak outlook. The film has a gritty realism to it - there's no clichéd romance subplots, no massive explosions and superhuman fights on top of moving trains - this is just simple but extremely effective. This is also in part due to the top notch cast. Robert Shaw is excellent as Mr Blue and shows everyone why he was cast as the bad guy in From Russia With Love. His character is extremely cunning and cold-hearted but even takes time to fill out a crossword whilst waiting for the authorities' decision on whether to give them the money. The man was a quality actor and it's a massive loss to the film world that he died when he was just starting to become recognised as such. Walter Matthau is great as Garber, the transit cop given the task of talking to Mr Blue and buy the authorities more time. The verbal sparring between the two men is good and considering it's only done over the radio, you'd think they were in the same room. Also of note is Hector Elizondo as Mr Grey, only too eager to pull the trigger and add fuel to the fire. His character is the most unpredictable because you don't know whether he is going to kill a hostage or one of the other hijackers! The film is also filmed in real time too so not a second is wasted - every moment on the screen matters because you know once the hour mark kicks in, the hostages are going to be executed.

Final Verdict: The Taking of Pelham One Two Three will not appeal to those brought up on a diet of explosions and cheese akin to the Hollywood blockbusters. But even those like myself who appreciate the older quality of horror and action films will be taken aback by just how excellent this film is. Get a copy of it right now and remember how to make a classic thriller.

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