If the New York City Police Force’s reputation was made in the wake of 9/11, then for some ungodly reason Tony Scott is trying to tear it down. With The Taking Of Pelham 123, Scott has created a smear campaign detailing the painful ineptitude of the Yankee bobbies, from mistaken firing to bungled police escorts, that doesn’t let up for a whole two hours. But I digress; aside from the infuriatingly unexplained Police bashing, there are other, more important things to note about the director’s latest venture with long time collaborator Denzel Washington and John Travolta. Just don’t get me started on the plot holes…

Set in NYC, the movie follows Walter Garber (Washington), a New York City subway dispatcher whose ordinary day at work is thrown into chaos when an armed gang of four hijacks a subway train. The guy in charge is Ryder (Travolta), who threatens to kill his hostages one by one unless he is paid a large sum of ransom money within the hour. So far so familiar, but although I wouldn’t advise holding your breath waiting for any major plot twists to shake things up, the pic does derail from the usual fast-paced action to a more sedate slow-burner method, providing at least a little something to distinguish itself from the crowd. With hardly anyone walking more than a few paces until at least three quarters of the way through the film, it’s fair to say that the tension comes from a static, more cerebral place than from balls out physicality.

The other perk to the film is the performances. Scott’s lap dog Washington is as dependable as ever and brings the right amount of intelligence and aggression to the table, although being one of his less juicy roles I’d still choose to watch him in American Gangster or Man On Fire over this. It is also a relief to see that Travolta keeps his ham in check and is controlled and convincing with just the occasional Castor Troy-esque outburst. The two clearly have chemistry and can banter off each other like the best of them, showing off the smart dialogue to its full effect.

Supporting actors round out the solid cast: there’s the legendary James Gandolfini playing a begrudging Mayor at the end of his term, Transformers 2’s Ramon Rodriguez as a glorified cheerleader pepping Garber from the sidelines of the Transit Rail Control Center (surely one of the least sexy settings for a Hollywood flick ever?), as well as a solid turn from John Turturro as the hostage negotiator, who makes the most of the small role assigned to him.

Never superb but predominantly inoffensive, this pic isn’t the smartest action on the block, but it’s slick enough to keep you entertained and short enough to keep you interested.

Georgine Waller