The Taking of Pelham 123

Denzel Washington v John Travolta. Seems like a good idea. But these two actors are getting too big. They both only seem to make movies in which they are the hero. Denzel is playing the same basic role as he did in Inside Man and Travolta plays his role as the hero, even though he is a train hijacking, hostage killing domestic terrorist. So the film was a little bit too smooth and too cookie cutter to be really interesting. On the other hand, I always like movies in which the location is essential to the plot and becomes a character. Here New York and its subway system is a minor character that probably performed as well as any of the others. Unfortunately, an inanimate minor character does not a great movie make.
3-stars