The Taking of Pelham 123
2009
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- John Travolta rocking out the European gigogo face fuzz, middle aged anti-crooner leather and a newt amount of thespian ability. He can be summarised as the nose-flaring, chip-on-his-shoulder flake who plays out like a cross between a low grade neighbourhood thug and a nightclub residing pimp.
- Merry-go-round camera action from the MTV-esque director Tony Scott. It was like watching google 360 in tune to conversations scripted by a writer who probably cites urban dictionary as his sole literary reference.
- Filled to the brim with pointless backstories. Denzel Washington tries to itch the oscar bid by dishing out the 'hard-working-chump-just-trying-to-send-his-tiny-tots-to-college' act with orchestrated 'cue audience emotion' music playing in the background. Denzel's wife gets dairy cravings. And local guns-and leather hood John regurgitates some 'ass model and sledge dog dung story' to break the silence. For real.
- A watered down ending that just slams the 'pointless remake' onto its chest.
This subway action caper is the big cheese of the genre. With a scrip busting at its seams with wise cracks and wispy humour, a lack of computer-dolloped special effects, Robert Shaw playing the subtemperature cold criminal, rainbow gang names later borrowed by a certain Quentin Tarantino and an anti-hollywood ending, this blows the lumpy frumpy remake out of the water. So what if the subway passengers seem to be a dishing of stereotypes?
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