The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
Rent & Buy
Armed men hijack a New York City subway train, holding the passengers hostage in return for a ransom, and turning an ordinary day's work for dispatcher Walter Garber into a face-off with the mastermind behind the crime.
What critics thought
Tony Scott's remake lands in mixed territory, with most critics finding it a competent but hollow action thriller that can't escape comparison to the tightly wound 1974 original. The central debate is whether the film's relentless sensory bombardment — Scott's rapid cutting, wall-to-wall noise, and inflated attitude — generates genuine tension or simply substitutes energy for craft. Travolta's villainy divides opinion sharply, and even defenders concede the film runs out of ideas before it runs out of screen time.
“There's not much wrong with Tony Scott's The Taking of Pelham 123, except that there's not much really right about it.”
Roger Ebert·Chicago Sun-Times
“Tony Scott's craft cannot create suspense, it substitutes noise, cursing and brutality.”
Armond White·New York Press
“Travolta remains singularly unbelievable as a villain. In movies like this and Swordfish and, let's not forget, Battlefield Earth, the actor strives for malice but generally can't get much darker than playground-bully meanness.”
Alonso Duralde·MSNBC
“This movie hits you like 600 volts from a sparking third rail. Damn straight it's electrifying [...] The only letdown comes in Scott's handling of the passengers, who remain frustratingly generic.”
Peter Travers·Rolling Stone
“Even with the plot's built-in ticking clock, the film relinquishes the tautly calibrated pace in the third act, never to get completely back on track.”
Michael Rechtshaffen·The Hollywood Reporter
Genres
Crime, Thriller, Action
Cast & Crew
Tony ScottDirector
Denzel WashingtonWalter Garber
John TravoltaRyder
John TurturroLt. Camonetti
Luis GuzmánPhil Ramos
James GandolfiniMayor
Michael RispoliJohn Johnson
Gary BasarabaJerry Pollard, motorman
Alex KaluzhskyGeorge, teen hostage
Alice KremelbergGeorge's Girlfriend
Katherine SigismundMother-hostage
Jake SicilianoBoy hostage
Gbenga AkinnagbeWallace, hostage
Harry Gregson-WilliamsComposer
John GodeyWriter
Brian HelgelandWriter
Tobias A. SchliesslerCinematographyThe Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
Armed men hijack a New York City subway train, holding the passengers hostage in return for a ransom, and turning an ordinary day's work for dispatcher Walter Garber into a face-off with the mastermind behind the crime.
What critics thought
Tony Scott's remake lands in mixed territory, with most critics finding it a competent but hollow action thriller that can't escape comparison to the tightly wound 1974 original. The central debate is whether the film's relentless sensory bombardment — Scott's rapid cutting, wall-to-wall noise, and inflated attitude — generates genuine tension or simply substitutes energy for craft. Travolta's villainy divides opinion sharply, and even defenders concede the film runs out of ideas before it runs out of screen time.
“There's not much wrong with Tony Scott's The Taking of Pelham 123, except that there's not much really right about it.”
Roger Ebert·Chicago Sun-Times
“Tony Scott's craft cannot create suspense, it substitutes noise, cursing and brutality.”
Armond White·New York Press
“Travolta remains singularly unbelievable as a villain. In movies like this and Swordfish and, let's not forget, Battlefield Earth, the actor strives for malice but generally can't get much darker than playground-bully meanness.”
Alonso Duralde·MSNBC
“This movie hits you like 600 volts from a sparking third rail. Damn straight it's electrifying [...] The only letdown comes in Scott's handling of the passengers, who remain frustratingly generic.”
Peter Travers·Rolling Stone
“Even with the plot's built-in ticking clock, the film relinquishes the tautly calibrated pace in the third act, never to get completely back on track.”
Michael Rechtshaffen·The Hollywood Reporter
Genres
Crime, Thriller, Action
Cast & Crew
Tony ScottDirectorDenzel WashingtonWalter GarberJohn TravoltaRyderJohn TurturroLt. CamonettiLuis GuzmánPhil RamosJames GandolfiniMayorMichael RispoliJohn JohnsonGary BasarabaJerry Pollard, motormanAlex KaluzhskyGeorge, teen hostageAlice KremelbergGeorge's GirlfriendKatherine SigismundMother-hostageJake SicilianoBoy hostageGbenga AkinnagbeWallace, hostageHarry Gregson-WilliamsComposerJohn GodeyWriterBrian HelgelandWriterTobias A. SchliesslerCinematographyRent & Buy