Unstoppable (2010)

the audience applauded

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

While nobody thinks that a movie only covering a few hours out of a day would not be that great, this was really cool. While this movie was based on true events, it really stretched it out a lot more than the true story was. If you like hardcore action, intense suspense, and close calls, this is the movie you've been waiting for. It was really cool.

I liked this movie, a lot. Great entertainment,but it's not very realistic.If any of the railroad employees had even a little common sense, this would have been over in ten minutes. Once the consist was connected, the engineer could have just applied the dynamic, and stepped off the back of the rear engine, onto 777. Problem solved.Also,Dewey, could have just waited, for the rear steps of 777,and then climbed on, rather than try to chase the front. A good movie though. I highly recommend it,especially, if you like trains.

Denzel Washington time and time again elevates the caliber of any film he touches. To employ the vernacular, "The guy really classes up the joint". His portrayal of Frank, a no-bullsh-- veteran Train Engineer in 2010's "Unstoppable", only serves to perpetuate this career-spanning capacity.Washington is equal parts compelling and believable in this "based on actual events" story as an ordinary man thrust headlong into extraordinarily volatile circumstances as he struggles to stop a runaway and pilotless train of tankers filled with explosively flammable cargo. Frank is somewhat jaded and cynical, yes, and with fair reason in light of the unseemly politics and the for-crap management he has wrestled with over his decades of rock solid service. It is consistently captivating to witness this fellow grapple with both the enormously stressful situation at hand and the incompetents who inhabit positions of leadership at his Railway Freight company. Chris Pine is just fine as the new kid Engineer, Will, working his first day on the job with Frank. However, for my money it isn't anywhere near the authentically impressive performance he generates in the Oscar-nominated movie of last year "Hell or High Water". In that role Pine is REALLY good, clearly far more mature and evolved as an actor. Here he merely more or less occupies a run-of-the-mill stock function.And props are due Rosario Dawson, as well, who is staggeringly beautiful as always in a helluva turn as a tough-a-- chick who bucks authority to do what is right rather than what most satisfies the corporate bottom line. Dawson's character of Connie is strong, smart, savvy and, again, aesthetically stunning."Unstoppable" is a notch or two above your standard Popcorn Thrill Ride flick. But it almost certainly would not have been even this good were it not for the inimitable contributions of the wondrous Washington. Movies are great.

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.