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Movie Trailers: <em>The Taking of Pelham 123</em>, Remake Vs. Original
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 13, 2009
Modified Feb 13, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 13, 2009
Modified Feb 13, 2009
Share
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As you no doubt have heard, the original 1974 film The Taking of Pelham 123 has been remade into a contemporary thriller. But instead of a team of stylishly eccentric subway highjackers, the new version seems to feature just one, a tattooed John Travolta. Taking over the role of protagonist Lieutenant Zachary Garber, originally played by Walter Matthau, is Denzel Washington, sporting an earring just like his nemesis Travolta—maybe director Tony Scott is exploring some sort of deep ying/yang metaphor.
Also along for the ride are James Gandolfini, John Turturro, and Luis Guzmán. A promising cast, but if the trailer is any indication, this slick remake has done away with all the rusty, analog charm of the original. It looks like Inside Man on a train instead of in a bank, and without the mitigating balm of Clive Owen. But at the very least, you can bank on a midnight screening of the original at the Sunshine once the remake drops, so that's one reason not to hate Tony Scott. (One.)
Here's the remake trailer; below is the original trailer.
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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