Such a frustrating disappointment

Absolutely amazing

It is so daring, it is so ambitious, it is so thrilling and weird and pointed and powerful. I never knew where it was going.

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

I really like Denzel Washington so I was checking out what movie of his should I watch next. Stumbled across this one, saw high ratings and decided to give it a try. I expected interesting characters because the story sounded and is extremely predictable but I was very underwhelmed. I'm not mad at the plot because you can't really make it interesting, it's just a train... but more effort could've been put in the characters, they felt way too bland.

The collaborations between the late Tony Scott and Denzel Washington were not going to set the world on fire. Yet I keep getting drawn back to them. The competence both behind the camera and on screen makes for thrilling films, and Unstoppable is no different. A train is left stupidly on full throttle and is unmanned. Carrying hazardous cargo, two train drivers take it upon themselves to stop this train from potentially killing thousands. It does sound ridiculous, right? You would be correct. Now I'm no train expert but you would think you could remotely stop a train these days? Regardless, I find this to be fun. I can always watch this and not become bored. It's not everyday someone compares a train to a missile, just that alone puts a smile on my face (evidently I'm sadistic). What prevents this from being a mind numbingly boring action flick is the focus on troubled personal lives. Washington and Pine's characters both have difficult times away from work, and its through them discussing this that they actually bond closer. The impending doom as Dawson's sassy yet professional character consistently exclaims "6 minutes!" or "it's just passed milestone 46, you gotta hurry up!" in order to create thrills. Slightly uninspired but it does the trick. All the performances were competent, nothing outstanding but it gets the job done. The different techniques in order to try and halt this train were interesting to say the least. Derailing it, forcing a train ahead of it to try and slow it down, shooting at a tiny switch...some real genius work there...! Scott's direction was fast and frantic which assisted in maintaining the adrenaline, safe to say he did have a unique style which I fully appreciated. Look, you'll either watch Unstoppable thinking "I say, this is absolute tosh!" or you could sit back, relax and just enjoy what's on screen. Please be the latter, because this is a good time and y'know...not every film needs to be extraordinary.

Tony Scott's Unstoppable was the maverick's last directorial outing before his heartbreaking and untimely death. It's ironic because the film's title is a descriptive term I would have applied to the man's career, life and approach to filmmaking. But it was not to be. This is some swan song of a film to go out on though, a pleasing juggernaut of an action drama that greases the tracks and goes full steam ahead. Any film about trains run amok will inevitably be compared to the 1984 masterpiece Runaway Train, and although this one is vastly different in both story and tone, they just seem to be sister films. The mournful, resolute nature of Jon Voight's character in it just seems to echo the sadness surrounding this film, and the fact that it was Tony's last. But that's just my strange intuition talking. The film itself isn't really melancholy or downbeat, in fact it focuses largely on human triumph in the face of gross error. There is in fact a runaway train on the loose here, but the stakes are upped when we find out that it's packed to the brim with highly toxic and flammable chemicals, and hurtling unchecked towards a densely populated metropolitan area. Denzel Washington is the Everyman veteran railroad worker, in danger of having his job devoured by greedy corporate development and ready to have a meltdown. Chris Pine is the hothead rookie swaggering through his first month on throb, and together they have to deal with the disaster, and prevent any further outcome. Rosario Dawson is the frantic control station operator, trying to coach two other workers (Lew Temple & Ethan Suplee) and help as best she can. Kevin Dunn is the abrasive company CEO, unwilling to get his hands dirty and callously looking for the first readily available solution, even if it results in mild casualties that he doesn't have to witness. It's all been done before, no doubt, but not by Scott, and you can never write off a formula, trope or act n cliché as dead until the maverick has had a good crack at it. The scenes involving the train are breathless and edited with a glass shard explosiveness, never to shaky or chaotic, always in control and bursting from the frames like the speeding locomotive they encompass. Look out for Jeff Wincott as Pine's older brother, as well as Kevin Corrigan, T.J. Miller and David Warshofsky as well. It's not a bad little flick for a director to put the final seal on his career with, and stands as a wrecking ball of an action flick. I just wish we got to see more from the guy. RIP Tony.

The plot of this film is simple but highly effective; a driver shunting freight train 777 leaves the locomotive to change the points ahead of the train. While he is off the engine a control slips and the train powers out of the yard and onto the main line. The first concern is a train carrying school children but that is moved out of the way in the nick of time. The next worry is a freight train controlled by driver Frank Barnes and conductor Will Colson; it is heading towards 777 and it is uncertain whether they will be able to get to a sufficiently long siding before a collision occurs. As these trains head together the railway company attempts to stop 777 by positioning a locomotive in front of it and gradually slowing it to a speed where a driver can be lowered onto 777 from a helicopter… a plan that ends in disaster and doesn't stop 777. Frank and Will get to the siding just in time and after 777 passes Frank comes up with a plan; they will disconnect from their train, pursue 777 from behind and then attach to it before attempting to bring it to a halt. To make matters worse 777 is carrying volatile, toxic chemicals and is head towards a very sharp bend in the middle of the town of Stanton… it is travelling at 70MPH and the safe speed limit is 15MPH!I hadn't heard of this film before picking it up but figured it couldn't be too bad if it starred Denzel Washington and was directed by Tony Scott… I wasn't wrong in my assumption. The drama starts quickly and the tension is maintained from the moment 777 runs away till the gripping finale. If it wasn't for the fact that this was inspired by a real event it would be hard to believe that it was possible for train to run away like this let alone be caught and stopped by a pursuing locomotive. There is a slightly tagged on plot whereby the company refuse to derail the train, before the attempt to get a driver on board, for financial reasons is a bit unnecessary but doesn't detract from the drama. Denzel Washington and Chris Pine do impressive jobs as Barnes and Colson; this is very much their film. As one would expect from director Tony Scott the action is dramatic and looks very real… with the possible exception of when the train tilted while doing round a very sharp bend; not something that could have been safely done without special effects! Overall I'd heartily recommend this; I was gripped from start to finish.