Frank Miller was the programmer this week, and the last picture he presented was the really great action-thriller THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE from ole 1974.

It's a pure genre exercise, as pure as heroin up to the climax, that didn't bullshit around and definately alerted you to this fact with that badass opening theme music. Real slick in being economical without once ever feeling tired or make us go into a cycle (i.e. If you seen enough films of a genre, you usually have a concept of what probably will happen), and while I've never been to New York City, nor was around for the 1970s, PELHAM does authentically feel like a movie for that time and place, like Walter Hill's THE WARRIORS would be 5 years later.

PELHAM has influenced such robbery thrillers from RESERVOIR DOGS (notice the robbers' coding system, like "Mr. Green") to Spike Lee's INSIDE MAN (which probably owes more to PELHAM than DOG DAY AFTERNOON, but since PELHAM isn't as well known or well-respected, nobody seems to bring this up.)

Random note, but Tony Scott is remaking PELHAM with Denzel Washington and John Travolta, for 2010 I believe. No idea of which will be the hero transit cop or the villain hijacker, but how about Denzel as a villain for once? I know he's made a wealthy career from being the straight calm hero and shit, but lets see him be a baddie, just to change things up?

Also, if Travolta is the hostage-taker again, what with Tony Scott's ADD-editing, wouldn't this shit become another (lame) SWORDFISH?

THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE (1974) - ****1/2