The Taking of Pelham One Two Three” (1974) now available on blu ray

Joseph Sargent was largely a TV director when he was assigned (over Steven Spielberg, no less) to helm this screen adaption of John Godey’s best selling novel. And while the story was filmed two more times (as a TV movie in 1998 and again as a feature in 2014), this 1974 version is the original classic. It is now available on DVD and blu ray from Kino Lorber.

Maintaining its reputation as a strikingly realistic action drama, “The Taking of Pelham One Two Three” is also the quintessential heist film of the 1970s. A snarling Robert Shaw leads a gang of hijackers who take over a subway train and demand one million dollars, otherwise they plan to kill one passenger per minute. Walter Matthau is the perfect actor to play the ruffled, bitter police lieutenant who, along with colleagues like a sardonic Jerry Stiller, attempt to thwart the plans of the criminals while trying to determine their identity. The criminals give themselves code names that are colors; an idea that later inspired a similar practice in Quentin Tarrantino’s “Reservoir Dogs.”

The cast is filled with veteran performers like Martin Balsam, James Broderick, Hector Elizondo, and Doris Roberts, along with the aforementioned. The performances sustain the narrative as Sargent’s TV background allows the camera to help tell the story. Typical hostage movie stereotypes are abounding, but they share the same fearful circumstance as their plight taps into the viewer’s emotion.

“The Taking of Pelham One Two Three” is of a period before cell phones, computers, and other conveniences that would have redefined the story (the post 9/11 theatrical remake of 2014 addresses these issues differently). As a product of 1970s cinema, during a decade when a lot of particularly strong films were being produced, this film's classic status remains solid and not likely to change.

The blu ray from Kino Lorber is nicely produced, with such extras as interviews with composer David Shire, editor Jerry Greenberg, actor Hector Elizondo, and audio commentary by film historians Pat and Jim Healy. Highly recommended