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Released by: Kino Studio Classics
Released on: July 5th, 2016.
Director: Joseph Sargent
Cast: Walter Matthaw, Robert Shaw, Hector Elizondo, Martin Balsam, Jerry Stiller
Year: 1974
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The Movie:
Directed by Joseph Sargent in 1974 and based on the novel of the same name by author John Godey, The Taking Of Pelham One Two Three is one of those films that is almost brilliant in its simplicity. When the movie stars, four men wearing hats, glasses, long coats and moustaches, each carrying a package, board a New York City subway train. These four men - Mr. Blue (Robert Shaw), Mr. Green (Martin Balsam), Mr. Grey (Hector Elizondo) and Mr. Brown (Earl Hindman) - soon show their true colors when they wind up taking a subway car hostage after stopping it in the middle of a tunnel and separating it from the rest of the train. They use the radio to communicate with the Transit Police aboveground and make their demands clear - the city has exactly one hour to get them one million dollars in cash or they will start executing a hostage for every minute that the city goes past the hour.
Front and center in all of this is Lieutenant Zachary Garber (Walter Matthau) who, with some help from Lieutenant Rico Patrone (Jerry Stiller), handles the negotiations over the radio. When the highjackers shoot a transit supervisor who heads into the tunnel to talk to them, they quickly realize that these guys mean business and set the wheels in motion to get them their money on time. Of course, the press get wind of this, much to the dismay of the mayor (Lee Wallace), who heads to the scene at the insistence of the deputy mayor, if only to help improve his numbers in the polls. While the cops do what they can above ground, the passengers on the train start to become increasingly worried as the clock keeps on ticking and while Garber does everything he can to keep things moving on time, some of the guys below are starting to get anxious.
While by this point in the game the plot might seem a little predictable, The Taking Of Pelham One Two Three holds up remarkably well thanks to two key factors, those being the performances and the character development. The script does such a great job of making us like Matthau's Garber that we are one hundred percent behind him during all of this. By portraying him as flawed and human and prone to errors in judgment like the rest of us (the perfect example being a scene in which he talks down to some visiting Japanese transit officials who he assumes, incorrectly, do not speak English) we're able to sympathize with him and feel for his position. Matthau infuses his character with a gruff New York charm, portraying him as tough but not without emotion or a sense of humor about himself, while at the same time treating the situation with the heaviness it calls for. His interaction with Jerry Stiller, here in a more serious dramatic role than most will be used to, is also both endearing and believable. Contrasting with their good nature are the four 'bad guys,' though they're not as stereotypically evil as most movie villains tend to be. While Shaw's quite ruthless as the leader, Balsam is quite a bit more sympathetic than you might expect him to be. All four actors who play the antagonists do a fine job here, and we have no problem buying them in their respective roles even if a bit more background information on them as to how they got to be where they are might have made things a little more interesting in that regard.
The performances and the characters drive the story but so too does the situation. The film does a great job of building tension and suspense and as we've invested enough into the movie to care about the ending, it makes the finale all the more intriguing. As such, it holds up well, taking a great concept and treating it right.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The Taking Of Pelham One Two Three looks very nice in this AVC encoded 2.35.1 widescreen 1080p high definition transfer from Kino on a 50GB disc. Though there's a good bit of grain here and there it's never distracting or unnatural looking. As far as actual print damage is concerned, there's not much to complain about here, the picture is clean aside from some minor specks here and there. This isn't the most colorful film ever made but skin tones look nice and natural and the earth tones used throughout the movie are replicated well. The grey interiors of the subway cars look appropriately dire! Black very strong and shadow detail looks really good here too. There aren't any problems with any obvious edge enhancement nor are there any issues with any compression artifacts to note. All in all, fans of the film should be very pleased with the visual side of this release. As to how it compares to the older release from MGM, which looked quite good, things are a bit brighter and the colors look a little better but detail looks about the same.
The only audio option on the disc is an English language DTS-HD 2.0 Mono track, though optional subtitles are available in English only. The mix sounds fine given its age and while it might have been nice to have a surround sound option included here, the original track sounds good and does benefit from the increased clarity that the lossless audio provides. The score sounds really nice, the dialogue is clean and clear and there are no problems with hiss or distortion. If some scenes sound just a little bit flat by modern standards so be it, but all in all the movie sounds just fine. More discerning ears might notice slightly improved balance here when compared to the previous MGM disc. While, like the transfer, the differences aren't massive they are there.
Extras start off with an audio commentary featuring actor/filmmaker Pat Healy and film historian Jim Healy. These guys do a pretty solid job of talking about the history and importance of the film. They cover the cast and some of the more subtle (and less subtle!) aspects of their performances, the importance of the authentic New York City locations, the novel that the film was originally based on and quite a bit more. There are a lot of interesting facts and stories told here - it's a thorough dissection of the picture and definitely worth listening to.
From there we get a series of interviews, the first of which spends twelve minutes with actor Hector Elizondo where he talks about what it was like working as an actor in the New York City film scene of the seventies, how he landed the role, his thoughts on the film and what it was like working with some of the other actors in the picture. Next, composer David Shire talks for nine minutes about his work on the film, what went into creating the score for the picture, his writing process and having to be flexible and willing to change some of his original ideas to better suit the film. The third and final interview lets editor Gerald B. Greenberg talk for nine minutes about working on the picture with co-editor Robert Q. Lovett and director Joseph Sargent to pace the film and ensure that it flowed in just the right way. All three of these are pretty interesting.
Outside of that we get a "Trailers From Hell" entry for the film with Josh Olson, an animated montage of stills and posters, the film's original theatrical trailer, static menus and chapter selection.
The Final Word:
The Taking Of Pelham One Two Three remains a high point in seventies cinematic suspense! It's a tightly paced mix of action and thrills, superbly directed and performed by a great cast. Kino's Blu-ray release offers a slight upgrade over the previous MGM release in terms of presentation but also a substantial upgrade over that barebones release in the extra features department. A really great release overall.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
