This is the intriguing story of a hijacked subway train that began its run at New York's Pelham Bay Park at 1:23 P.M. Therefore, it was known as Pelham One Two Three.

Walter Matthau plays a Transit Authority Lieutenant in this 1974 crime thriller but the best performance is turned in by Robert Shaw who plays the leader of the four man gang of hijackers. Martin Balsam is also excellent as the disgruntled ex-motorman who has a score to settle with the Transit Authority. Other members of the gang are Earl Hindman as Mr. Brown and Hector Elizondo as Mr. Grey. Jerry Stiller portrays Lieutenant Rico Patrone of the Transit Authority Police.

Some critics claim that this movie improves upon John Godey's best selling novel but I don't think so. There is so much more information you can glean from a novel than you can get from a movie that lasts an hour and forty minutes. Still, the movie does follow the book fairly closely, even though you have a better understanding of the characters when reading the novel.

The movie begins with the four hijackers boarding Pelham One Two Three at various stops along the route. At the same time, you are given a glimpse of the inner workings of New York's subway system as Walter Matthau's character, Lieutenant Garber, leads a group of Japanese businessmen on a tour of the command facilities.

When the gunmen take over the train, the immediate reaction of people from the mayor on down is one of utter disbelief that anyone would be crazy enough to capture a train. All through the movie, people a wondering how the hijackers are going to make their getaway. Garber knows that they aren't dealing with lunatics because the gunmen have everything planned down to the smallest detail. In one scene, Lieutenant Patrone says, "Wait a minute. I think I just figured out how they're going to get away." Garber answers, "I'm listening." Lieutenant Patrone says, "They're going to fly the train to Cuba."

The demands of the gunmen are simple. They want one million dollars within an hour or they'll start killing hostages. There is a gripping scene of a police car with a motorcycle escort racing through New York City from the Federal Reserve Bank in Manhattan, trying desperately to deliver the money before time expires.

Even though there are a few slow parts in this move, overall it's an excellent action thriller.

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