The action film Unstoppable is directed by Tony Scott and stars Denzel Washington, Chris Pine, and Rosario Dawson. The film takes place in modern day Pennsylvania.
The film centers around how a train yard worker named Dewey does not properly secure one of the trains. Because of this the train travels along the tracks at a hazardous speed and over on hundred thousand lives are on the line if it is not stopped because according to the physics it will derail on the Stanton curve and go into explosive materials that will likely destroy the town. A veteran engineer (Washington), Frank Barnes, and a first day conductor (Pine), Will Colson, decide to take the task to stop the train even if they lose their own lives in the process. No one thinks they are able to do it from the company that manages the trains except Connie Hooper (Dawson), the yard master. Can Frank Barnes and Will Colson stop the train before it reaches its tragic destination? Or is it unstoppable? The screenplay from Mark Bomback is quite entertaining, even though it is also quite corny. It is the basic action movie where the protagonist must stop the antagonist (in this case the train) before the antagonist accomplishes its deadly goal. And like all those films this one is equally as predictable. There is not much character development throughout the film, it is basically at the beginning of the film Frank and Will don't like each other and as it goes on they start to like each other. During the leisure time on their ride to catch the train they tell about their family lives to add another layer of drama to the script and make the climax even more sentimental. On a more positive note the whole way through the film is very entertaining and will keep you satisfied during it, but in the upcoming days you may forget that you have ever seen it.
Tony Scott is a veteran director and this is his fifth collaboration with actor Denzel Washington. I really like a lot of the shot choices Scott employed, such as the many shots underneath the train. Another shot thought was very well done was when the train collided with the tractor that was on the train track, basically all the shots involving the trains were good. the performances that Scott was able to get from his actors are appropriate to the level of the film, he didn't really get any bad ones. Tony Scott is always a director worth watching because almost all of his films are entertaining and great to watch when you aren't looking for something tiring.
The strongest aspect of the film was probably the high pace editing by Robert Duffy Chris Lebenzon. It kept the excitement way up in a film which could have been quite boring. If it wasn't for their editing it would just be two guys following a train, but Duffy and Lebenzon added the excitement and flare to the film. I really liked the sounds they put in when cutting the Connie Hooper in the train headquarters and how it just went to talking, no time to wait, just like in the actual film.
The acting was mediocre in this film, which is disappointing because there are three very talented actors in the film. The first being the two time Oscar winning Denzel Washington who seemed like he was just on cruise control for this movie. He played the part but didn't add himself into it, there was no passion. When you watch Washington in a film like Training Day you can feel that he is going all out to be spectacular, but in this he does not have that type of drive. Chris Pine who became a success for his role in the new Star Trek gave a fine performance but nothing too great. So far in his career he has not really proved that he is an acting force even though he does have a very likable charm to him, hopefully in the future he will give a strong performance that shows how he deserves to be the lead in films. Rosario Dawson played her part as Connie Hooper just right as well, but it did not have much character in it so she could not really show off her acting ability. The supporting cast all did fine, no one really to complain about.
Overall I give this film a 6/10, it is a fun ride but is forgetful when you get home from the theatre. It does look like at the next family dinner Tony Scott can go to his brother Ridley and laugh how people like his latest movie unlike Ridley's latest Robin Hood. If you are looking for something not too serious head to the theatre now to give this a watch, especially if you are as big of a Denzel Washington fan as I am.
The film centers around how a train yard worker named Dewey does not properly secure one of the trains. Because of this the train travels along the tracks at a hazardous speed and over on hundred thousand lives are on the line if it is not stopped because according to the physics it will derail on the Stanton curve and go into explosive materials that will likely destroy the town. A veteran engineer (Washington), Frank Barnes, and a first day conductor (Pine), Will Colson, decide to take the task to stop the train even if they lose their own lives in the process. No one thinks they are able to do it from the company that manages the trains except Connie Hooper (Dawson), the yard master. Can Frank Barnes and Will Colson stop the train before it reaches its tragic destination? Or is it unstoppable? The screenplay from Mark Bomback is quite entertaining, even though it is also quite corny. It is the basic action movie where the protagonist must stop the antagonist (in this case the train) before the antagonist accomplishes its deadly goal. And like all those films this one is equally as predictable. There is not much character development throughout the film, it is basically at the beginning of the film Frank and Will don't like each other and as it goes on they start to like each other. During the leisure time on their ride to catch the train they tell about their family lives to add another layer of drama to the script and make the climax even more sentimental. On a more positive note the whole way through the film is very entertaining and will keep you satisfied during it, but in the upcoming days you may forget that you have ever seen it.
Tony Scott is a veteran director and this is his fifth collaboration with actor Denzel Washington. I really like a lot of the shot choices Scott employed, such as the many shots underneath the train. Another shot thought was very well done was when the train collided with the tractor that was on the train track, basically all the shots involving the trains were good. the performances that Scott was able to get from his actors are appropriate to the level of the film, he didn't really get any bad ones. Tony Scott is always a director worth watching because almost all of his films are entertaining and great to watch when you aren't looking for something tiring.
The strongest aspect of the film was probably the high pace editing by Robert Duffy Chris Lebenzon. It kept the excitement way up in a film which could have been quite boring. If it wasn't for their editing it would just be two guys following a train, but Duffy and Lebenzon added the excitement and flare to the film. I really liked the sounds they put in when cutting the Connie Hooper in the train headquarters and how it just went to talking, no time to wait, just like in the actual film.
The acting was mediocre in this film, which is disappointing because there are three very talented actors in the film. The first being the two time Oscar winning Denzel Washington who seemed like he was just on cruise control for this movie. He played the part but didn't add himself into it, there was no passion. When you watch Washington in a film like Training Day you can feel that he is going all out to be spectacular, but in this he does not have that type of drive. Chris Pine who became a success for his role in the new Star Trek gave a fine performance but nothing too great. So far in his career he has not really proved that he is an acting force even though he does have a very likable charm to him, hopefully in the future he will give a strong performance that shows how he deserves to be the lead in films. Rosario Dawson played her part as Connie Hooper just right as well, but it did not have much character in it so she could not really show off her acting ability. The supporting cast all did fine, no one really to complain about.
Overall I give this film a 6/10, it is a fun ride but is forgetful when you get home from the theatre. It does look like at the next family dinner Tony Scott can go to his brother Ridley and laugh how people like his latest movie unlike Ridley's latest Robin Hood. If you are looking for something not too serious head to the theatre now to give this a watch, especially if you are as big of a Denzel Washington fan as I am.