For a movie about a runaway train, Unstoppable, created by Tony Scott, isn’t boring in the least. The movie opens up with a scene showing, of course, trains. It then changes to Chris Pine shirtless and sleeping, and it was all uphill from there.
The characters, setting and conflict are all set up quickly and the nail-biting intensity soon ensues. From a train full of children on the same track to tons of hazardous chemicals possibly exploding, there never is a moment where you aren’t at the edge of your seat.
Unstoppable is loosely based on a true story about a runaway train in rural Ohio.
However, like most Hollywood movies based on true events the stakes were raised and conflicts were added.
The plot is simple, an unmanned train with no air-brakes is hurtling down a main railroad track and is carrying tons of toxic chemicals and diesel fuel.
Chris Pine and Denzel Washington play Will and Frank, two railroad employees that take it upon themselves to stop train 777 themselves.
Their characters are very simple, Will is the young inexperienced worker, while Frank has been working for the company for 28 years.
Their interactions are pretty cliche — veteran giving the newbie advice and the newbie disregarding it and then making the veteran proud.
However, Washington and Pine had a nice on-screen chemistry that added a freshness to the relationship.The high intensity is coupled beautifully with witty remarks and well-placed jokes by the characters.
Another great thing about the movie is the way it was filmed.
The filming techniques create a very intense atmosphere. Because the movie is about trains, director Tony Scott had to emphasize their awesome power, which he does with great execution.
He also does a great job integrating the action sequences and character interactions with media coverage. The technologies used by the news stations and by the train company facilitated viewers’ ability to understand where the train was and how close it was to what towns. All in all, the movie was executed wisely.
Rosario Dawson was also a great addition to the cast. She played Connie Hooper, the station master in charge of the train yard from where train 777 originated.
The interactions between her, Frank and Will, and their collective interactions with the company VP Galvin, display the trite theme that hard-working employees are good while the VPs and the men in suits only care about money and are therefore bad.
This was the main problem with the movie. Although the movie was gripping and suspenseful, the characters and their interactions were overwhelmingly cliche.
The pairing of a newbie and a veteran, the workers were good while the bureaucrats were bad, the unappreciative daughters of a hard-working man and finally the lovers quarrel between the hunky star and his wife; all these cliches were so blatantly obvious it could been seen as insulting.
While some aspects of Unstoppable were trite it is still worth the time and effort to see it in theaters. The movie never slows down and is a continuous “full steam ahead.”
There is never a second where there isn’t some sort of obstacle to overcome. As more and more plans to stop the train fail, the stakes get higher and higher.
Washington, Pine and Dawson deliver their roles flawlessly and enhance the film’s appeal. Overall, Unstoppable is a hit and tells an enthralling tale of courage and danger.