7.9 | / 10 |
Users | 4.1 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A gang of thugs who have hijacked a subway train near New York's Pelham Station threaten to kill one hostage per minute. Forced to stall the assailants until a ransom is delivered or a rescue made, transit chief Lt. Garber must somehow ad-lib, con and outmaneuver one of the craftiest, cruelest villains ever.
Starring: Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw (I), Martin Balsam, Hector Elizondo, Tony Roberts (I)Drama | 100% |
Heist | 30% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Crime | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (48kHz, 24-bit)
Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono (192 kbps)
French: Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono (192 kbps)
English SDH, French
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 2.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three is 37 years old and looks it, but there's nothing antique about its craftsmanship. The storyline is simplicity itself: Put armed men in charge of a subway car of hostages, and watch while layers of city bureaucracy try to respond, on a deadline, to their ransom demands. Little time was wasted on backstory, subplots or exploration of motive. The effect becomes obvious when one compares the 2009 Tony Scott-directed remake, where substantial screen time is devoted to such concerns, and the movie goes slack as a result. The 1974 original may not have Scott's whizz-bang camera moves or the saturated palette he's come to favor, but it's much more engrossing. Thrillers work best when they're pared to their essence.
Not the usual day for Lt. Garber.
Evaluating the Blu-ray presentation of Pelham One Two Three presents a challenge, because
most of us haven't seen the film except in sub-par home video versions. (The region 1 DVD
wasn't enhanced for 16:9.) Even those of us who saw the film in theaters can't rely on memories
of a viewing over three decades ago.
Viewers who are allergic to anything grainy on Blu-ray won't like this disc. Those who
appreciate efforts by colorists and compressionists to preserve the vintage look of the era in
which a film was made should be delighted. The inherent softness and grain structure of the
image appear to be undisturbed throughout the film, and no apparent effort has been made either
to reduce the grain or sharpen the image. This is a Seventies film, and it looks like one.
Where the transfer is more likely to generate controversy, even among those who don't object to
grain, is its darkness. This transfer of Pelham One Two Three is considerably darker than
previous versions, although never so much so that one cannot see what is going on. Black levels
are sufficiently strong, and detail is sufficiently well maintained, that one can always make out
what's happening, even in the long stretches in the subway tunnels with scant illumination. In the
absence of an answer print or any input from an authoritative source such as the director or the
cinematographer (the distinguished Owen Roizman, whose credits include The French
Connection), it is impossible to say whether this darker version is more accurate than previous
renditions. I can only note that scenes set in full daylight or brightly lit interiors appear to have
adequate white levels and do not appear overly dark.
The color palette is drab and muted, and a haze of brown grime seems to overlay everything. This
is not unusual for films of the period set in New York and is generally an accurate reflection of
the city's condition at the time. In addition to the reds and blues of police lights, the most vivid
colors on display are those of Garber's yellow tie and loud plaid shirt. The Seventies were not a
good era for fashion.
Minor gate weave is evident during both the opening and closing titles, but it was not a
distraction during the film. The source materials appear to be in very good condition.
The original mono soundtrack is presented in DTS lossless; however, the track has been mastered in 2.0 format, with identical left and right channels, so that the viewer has a choice between playing it directly through the left and right front speakers or through a matrix decoder, which will collapse the sound to the center. I chose the latter option. The track holds up well for its age. Dialogue is clear, and all the sound effects are realistic, although obviously they lack the impact of contemporary soundtracks. Subway noises in the higher ranges (e.g., screeching brakes, clattering wheels) are reproduced best, whereas the lower end is more lacking, as one would expect. Overall, I found this track much preferable to the artificially hollow and boomy results one often gets when mixes of this vintage are subjected to a 5.1 "update".
As with other recent MGM discs, e.g., Back to School, Fox has mastered this title with no main menu but with BD-Java, omitting the ability to set bookmarks. No BDJ-encoded disc should ever
lack this capability. BDJ prevents the user from stopping playback and starting from the same
position, and bookmarking is the only workaround. Its omission is inexcusable.
Ironically, the film that Tony Scott and Denzel Washington made after remaking Pelham One
Two Three was closer to that film in spirit. In Unstoppable, the lead protagonist, like Zach
Garber, was a professional doing his job who didn't have any sin for which he had to atone
(though Chris Pine's sidekick character did). And the enemy was as implacable and almost as
laconic as Robert Shaw's Mr. Blue, because it was a machine, set loose by human error. A lot of
competing constituencies hollered into cellphones, radios and TV cameras, arguing over how to
control the situation, but none of them had backstories of any importance. The situation was too
dire and too urgent for those kinds of distractions.
If the remake of Pelham One Two Three had stuck to those principles, it would have been a
better film. Instead, we got Travolta's "Ryder" talking, talking and talking until all the tension
was talked out of the film. Ryder would never have made it on Mr. Blue's team. Mr. Blue would
have shut him up early on, for good.
The Blu-ray of the original Pelham One Two Three is well worth your time. The only real
disappointment is the lack of extras.
1974
1974
50th Anniversary Edition
1974
1951
1972
Gunmen on the Loose
1955
Limited Edition to 3000
1967
1950
Limited Edition to 3000 - SOLD OUT
1955
Limited Edition to 3000
1973
1951
1936
1959
1955
1950
1971
1990
1995
1972
1961
1973
Limited Edition to 3000 - SOLD OUT
1955
1957