They Called Themselves Mr. Blue, Green, Gray and Brown

“I once had a man shot for talking to me like that,” Mr. Blue says.

“Yeah, well, that’s the difference between you and me,” Mr. Grey says. “I’ve always done my own killing.”

-The Taking of Pelham 123 (original)

Mr. Blue, played by Robert Shaw, is the English mercenary who leads three henchmen into the tunnels under 1974 New York, taking a subway car filled with stereotypical hostages and holding them for ransom. He’s evil, pure and simple, no doubt about it.

Good wins, evil loses. It’s all very black-and-white in the movie.

There’s only one character that isn’t: Mr. Grey, played by Hector Elizondo. He’s not evil so much as he’s chaos. He’s the guy no one can figure and no one can predict. And the thrill is not in what he does but in what he might do.

The remake of this 1974 movie will be releasing by the same name in June 2009.
Starring: Denzel Washington, John Travolta, Luis Guzman, Victor Gojcaj, Robert Vataj, James Gandolfini and John Tuturro.

It is the story of a day in New York City on a subway train that no one will ever forget. For more on the synopsis of this thriller, visit: http://www.thetakingofpelham123gulf.com/

The Remake Trend In Hollywood

‘Pelham’ is an entertaining thriller about a band of hijackers, led by Mr. Blue, (sounds familiar?) who take the train hostage. Great casting and rapturous ending… What more do we need to enjoy munching pop-corn, warming the seat in theaters….
To watch movie videos and more, click: http://www.thetakingofpelham123gulf.com/

Remakes continue to be the hot trend (or should I say- last resort!) in the business as a slew of them are in or going into production.

Tony Scott (Crimson Tide) shot a make on the terrific 1973 thriller “The Taking of Pelham One Two Three” which was one of the great NYC based films of all-time. Denzel Washington and John Travolta will take on the Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw parts.

But why bother doing a remake when the original was loved by everyone? Well, when the story is fascinating and the roles are interesting, why wouldn’t it be remade over and over?

In the movie, John Travolta is a villain and Denzel Washington has to take him down. A group of hijackers, led by John Travolta, take a New York City subway train and its passengers, threatening to kill them if their ransom of one million dollars per hostage is not paid in one hour.

All I can say is the movie is going to rock!

Get a seek peek of the latest summer movie ‘The Taking of Pelham 123’ at: http://www.thetakingofpelham123gulf.com/

Taking Pelham Again!

Last September, the remake plans of ‘The Taking of Pelham 123’ were announced, with Tony Scott directing and Denzel Washington reprising the Walter Matthau role of Lt. Zachary 'Z' Garber.

While there’s certainly top notch talent involved with this new version, it will be hard to recapture the efficiency of Joseph Sergeant’s 1973 incarnation which captured everything that makes a movie thriller great.

The original was perfect, the characters in the movie were strong willed and they supported the storyline. Many regard it as one of the 1970’s very best films and I doubt that the 2009 remake will be that believable.

The new version stars Denzel Washington (looking less than trim) as the hero, NYC transit detective Lieutenant Zachary Garber, who battles the film’s villain John Travolta (Mr. Blue) who takes over a subway car and holds its passengers hostage for a large ransom. Pelham rides into gulf theaters on June 5th, 2009.

Till then, take a look at the stills and videos of the movie on the official website: http://www.thetakingofpelham123gulf.com/

Remake: Not A Piece Of Cake

A remake is easy when the original isn’t a very good movie. You can make it shine the 2nd time. But beating a popular original movie is too tough. Who to cast, what changes should be made, etc. is difficult when your trying to turn a popular hit movie, into a bigger hit.

‘The Taking of Pelham 123’ was no different. The screenwriter for this 2009 remake would agree with that.

Screenwriter David Koepp is the one who recently adapted the novel by John Godey, for director Tony Scott and star Denzel Washington.

Expressing his dilemma Koepp said-

“I wrote many drafts to try and put it in the present day and keep all the great execution that was there from the first one,” he explained. “It’s thirty years later so you have to take certain things into account. Hopefully we came up with a clever way to move it to the present.”

This was just one of the obstacles faced by him.

“Not the least of which, of course, is that even forgetting for a moment the new technology, it’s a terrorist situation in New York in a “post-9/11 world,” said Koepp.

Catch the 2009 version of ‘The Taking of Pelham 123’ on: http://www.thetakingofpelham123gulf.com/