ViewGuide

Created Nov 22, 2010 08:28PM PST • Edited Sep 28, 2011 07:23PM PST

1. Quality

2. Summary

   Really Great 4.5

   A freight train full of toxic chemicals gets loose, threatening disaster unless two blue collar railmen can bring it under control. The result is bravura big screen entertainment, old school style: nothing supernatural, adults behaving like adults, lots of moviestar charisma.

   This instant classic is action master Tony Scott’s best movie since Crimson Tide, one of his earlier collaborations with Denzel Washington. Speaking of America’s favorite moviestar, this is his best role in years. Director and leading man rode the rails last year with The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3, to disappointing results. Good thing they chose to take the train again, since they’ve got a triumph in Unstoppable.

   The movie’s only flaw is that it’s a crowd pleaser that fails to get the audience to cheer. Literally. The theater I was in echoed occasionally with laughs and exclamations of awe, but not a single cheer. Perhaps the movie is too bulletproof and therefore a bit distancing.

   No matter. Crowd pleasing, old school movies are to be treasured. Unstoppable’s assets also include a bevy of great performances, including by bona fide moviestar Chris Pine and smart beauty Rosario Dawson. Movie fans all down the line should climb aboard.

4. Acting

   Great 4.0

   This is the best role Denzel’s had in years. It’s everything we love about him: grounded, opinionated, decent, capable. When he smiles, we know it’s OK to smile, perhaps the greatest power a screen legend can display.

   Chris Pine delivers his second leading man triumph in two years, the other being his magnificent James T. Kirk in Star Trek. Stop the presses: the guy is now a bona fide moviestar. He comes across here more as a Steve McQueen type than a William Shatner type, so he’s got versatility to go with his leading man looks. It’s going to be fascinating watching his career develop, especially to see if a Chris Pine type is in the offing.

   Rosario Dawson jumps off the screen as a highly capable rail-yard manager. Just as in Killshot, she makes what could have been a throwaway role into something distinctive. This gorgeous actress seems ready to make the leap to leading lady status.

   Ethan Suplee nails the stupid slob role that sets the train – and the movie – in motion. Between this and his Randy Hickey from My Name is Earl, he’s the idiotic everyman of our time.

5. Male Stars Perfect 5.0

6. Female Stars Great 4.0

7. Female Costars Very Good 3.5

8. Male Costars Great 4.0

10. Film

    Really Great 4.5

    Tremendously powerful filmmaking is a Tony Scott trademark, as evidenced by the molar-shaking use of sound when huge trains rumble by, volcanic explosions when they crash, and crackling action cuts between scenes full of dynamic energy. The film’s only flaw is that it’s too much on rails plot wise and therefore a bit distancing.

11. Direction Perfect 5.0

    Tony Scott tried a train film last year (The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3) and missed the mark by most accounts. Trying again, he succeeds magnificently. A past master at action movies pitting men against overpowering 20th Century machines (Top Gun, Crimson Tide), he’s got his mojo working here … on rails.

12. Play Really Great 4.5

13. Music Great 4.0

14. Visuals Really Great 4.5
15. Content

16. Edge

    Tame 1.5

    Old school edginess: tension, plot, characters developed so we care when they get into harm’s way. Bravo.

17. Sex Innocent 1.4

18. Violence Fierce 1.6

19. Rudeness Salty 1.6

21. Reality

    Glib 1.5

    Old school style doesn’t mean old school reality. Two dozen visual FX specialists, including an “inferno artist,” plus three dozen stuntmen see to that.

    Finally to its setting: As a proud son of the Keystone State, I can testify that Unstoppable gets the look and feel of Pennsylvania just right. Some of the cities and towns it portrays seem invented out of whole cloth, however.

22. Circumstantial Glib 2.0

23. Biological Natural 1.0

24. Physical Glib 1.5