"Even great men have to pee."

Yes, even Walter Matthau.

The Taking Of Pelham One Two Three is a film that had the misfortune of being a thriller made in the 1970s. What this meant was that instead of getting the absolute widespread plaudits, awards and huge box office that it quite obviously deserves, it ended up bubbling under a fair amount of the massive numbers of other similar films made in the decade.

It's not the fault of the film or anyone involved - it just happens like that sometimes. There is no doubt in my mind, though, that this is not only every bit as deserving as other more iconic films from the decade such as The French…

The difference between a film being racist and a character being racist is clearly illustrated in this film, as it does both.

There's a moment early on when the colorful misters are hijacking the subway train. One of them calls a passenger a racial slur. The guy who does this is a brutal criminal who has just hijacked a subway car full of innocent people and threatened to kill them. His use of a racial slur is not endorsed by the writing, characterization, plot, or film overall.

The Japanese men getting a tour of the subway offices, on the other hand, are depicted stereotypically. They are treated poorly by grumpy white men for laughs. There's a mild punchline where it's…

The 1970s Crime Season!

I only reviewed this last December. And I said that I wasn't doing any more rewatches in this season. But it's my birthday today so I'm not even slightly sorry. No I won't tell you how old I am, fuck off.

This was probably my sixth or seventh viewing of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three and this time round my thoughts turned to why this is a cut above almost every other film of its type, not just from this decade, but from any decade. I wonder if it's because it isn't really of this 'type', if you know what I mean. It's not just the central plot, which sees a bunch of colour-monikered…

The difference between a film being racist and a character being racist is clearly illustrated in this film, as it does both.

There's a moment early on when the colorful misters are hijacking the subway train. One of them calls a passenger a racial slur. The guy who does this is a brutal criminal who has just hijacked a subway car full of innocent people and threatened to kill them. His use of a racial slur is not endorsed by the writing, characterization, plot, or film overall.

The Japanese men getting a tour of the subway offices, on the other hand, are depicted stereotypically. They are treated poorly by grumpy white men for laughs. There's a mild punchline where it's…

My December film for #BensSecretMovieExchange was Joseph Sargent‘s 1974 film, The Taking of Pelham 123. This movie is the most 1974 film, I’ve ever seen. The New York portrayed is very much the pre-Disneyfied city. Everyone has attitude to spare and no one can imagine why it’s important to lock an access gate in the subway system. The credits were what really did it for me. The cast list describes the train passengers as Maid, Hooker & my personal favourite homosexual. Women are regularly put down and called inferior and the n-word is used un-ironically and with malice. This film is a year younger than I am. I’m kind of pleased thinking about how far things have come in my lifetime.…