Film

The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3

Name: The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
Genre: Crime, Thriller, Action
Released: 2009
Cast: Denzel Washington, John Travolta, John Turturro, Luis Guzmán, James Gandolfini

A subway train hijacking turns into a tense standoff between a calm, quick-thinking dispatcher and a charismatic criminal mastermind. This is a lean, efficient thriller that lives in the gap between two men—one trapped underground, one trapped on the surface—forced to outsmart each other. Denzel and Travolta crackle against each other. It's for anyone who loves the pressure-cooker appeal of a single location and a ticking clock.

TMDb rating

3.2

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love a tense, talky cat-and-mouse thriller where the pleasure is two sharp adversaries trading barbs by radio while the clock runs down.

Skip it if you want a slow-burn character study or a grounded procedural; this leans into loud set pieces, a glossy 2009 gloss and a reliance on its two leads' charisma.

What it asks of you: It runs about an hour and forty-six minutes and stays mostly in one fraught location, so it asks for steady attention to dialogue rather than a relaxed, half-watched evening.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Speed1994

Keanu and Sandra Bullock on a bomb-rigged bus with nowhere to go. Same DNA as Pelham—a simple, escalating premise that wrings maximum tension from containment and a strong pair of leads who have genuine chemistry.

But The action climax abandons the bus setting that made the first half so claustrophobic, and Keanu's mostly reactive. It doesn't quite stick the landing.

The Italian Job2003

A heist movie where the real pleasure is watching smart people coordinate a plan under pressure. The Mini Coopers are fun, but the real engine is the cat-and-mouse between thieves and investigators trying to stay one step ahead.

But Lighter in tone than Pelham—more playful heist movie than serious crime thriller. If you want darkness, this is too fleet and cheerful.

Unstoppable2010

Denzel again, this time on a runaway train, paired with Chris Pine. It has that same real-time pressure, that same sense of two men working together against an unstoppable force. Tautly directed, genuinely gripping.

But The villain is a train, not a person, which removes some of the psychological cat-and-mouse that makes Pelham special. It's more physical action, less wit.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Rope1948

Both films prove that a standoff between two intelligent antagonists—one trying to hide, one trying to expose—is more thrilling than any chase. The space is the trap.

Hitchcock's masterpiece: two men commit murder, then spend ninety minutes hosting a dinner party while a detective circles. One unbroken take (the illusion of it). The entire film is a standoff between predator and hunter pretending to be friends. Every principle that makes Pelham work—tension through conversation, the claustrophobia of a single space, two brilliant minds playing chess—Hitchcock did first and may have done best.

But Black and white, theatrical, very 1948. No action, no violence. If you need movement and spectacle, it will feel like watching two men talk in a room, because that's what it is.

Inside Man2006

Clive Owen orchestrates a bank heist while Denzel's detective tries to stay ahead of him. Intricate, intelligent, and the pleasure is pure: watching two brilliant people trying to read each other, layering deception on deception.

But It's quite a slow burn for a heist thriller, and the final twist divides people sharply. Some find it clever; others find it feels cheap.

Dog Day Afternoon1975

Al Pacino in a bank robbery that spirals into a standoff. Raw, sweaty, surprisingly funny, with real empathy for its desperate criminal. It invented much of what Pelham does, but with fiercer emotion and higher stakes.

But Much slower and sadder than Pelham—this is grief and desperation, not intellectual sparring. Not a thriller with wit; a tragedy with tension.

The Negotiator1998

Samuel L. Jackson and Kevin Spacey in a siege where the cop and the criminal know exactly how to manipulate each other because they speak the same language. Sly, tense, with two actors who enjoy every verbal feint.

But The '90s action-thriller sheen hasn't aged perfectly, and it leans into contrivance in the third act. Also considerably bloodier than Pelham.

Con Air1997

A transport thriller—Nicolas Cage on a prison plane with John Malkovich playing a villain so charismatic you understand why everyone's terrified. High-octane fun with two actors clearly loving the material.

But It's an over-the-top '90s action movie. If you want Pelham's restraint and intelligence, ConAir's baroque excess will feel silly.

The Town2010

Ben Affleck's bank robbers plan a heist while an obsessive FBI agent (Jeremy Renner) closes in. Excellent action, but the real pull is the moral weight—these criminals are trapped by their own loyalty and past.

But Bleaker and grittier than Pelham, with brutal violence. Also longer and more of a full crime epic than a single-location thriller.

Cellular2004

Chris Evans gets a call from a kidnapped woman and becomes her only lifeline. It's a taut, fast-moving thriller with real chemistry between two leads who've never met. Underrated fun.

But Lower budget and scope than Pelham, and the premise—a thriller set entirely over a phone call—stretches credibility. Feels smaller and lighter.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three1974

Obviously the same story, but watching them back-to-back is revelatory: the remake is about the men; the original is about the system. Different beasts entirely.

The original. Slower, funkier, grittier, with Walter Matthau as the dispatcher and Robert Shaw as the mastermind. It has a pulpy New York energy the 2009 version can only approximate. The pleasure is architectural—watching the plan unfold, seeing where it cracks.

But It's a '70s procedural, not a high-octane thriller. Long stretches are bureaucratic and unglamorous. If you want Denzel and Travolta's charisma, the original trades personality for authenticity.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three poster

Four Rooms1995

Both understand that one location and an unstoppable clock create their own narrative pressure. But where Pelham is about two masterminds, Four Rooms is about surviving idiots. Opposite registers; same structural genius.

Tim Roth as a bellhop in a single hotel on New Year's Eve, trapped in increasingly absurd encounters. It's a bottle episode of a film—one night, one location, mounting pressure, and a protagonist who can't escape. Like Pelham, it's about resourcefulness and quick thinking under constraint. Wildly strange and funny in ways Pelham isn't.

But It's a Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez curiosity that feels utterly of its moment. Whimsical and theatrical rather than tense. Some vignettes don't land. Not a thriller at all—closer to comedy.