Money Train (1995)
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on Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Myself and my wife loved this movie! Woody Harrelson plays a down-on-his-luck gambler who falls foul of the local Mafia with his gambling debts. Wesley Snipes plays his brother, a New York Transit Authority cop, who guards the so-called Money Train, an armoured subway car which collects the takings from each station. When Woody's character gets a good beating for failing to keep up repayments, he feels the only way out is to rob the Money Train, with or without Wesley's help! And we are treated to a host of spectacular action sequences on the rails! Jennifer Lopez(BABE!) also features as a cop with whom both Woody and Wesley's characters try to have more that a friendship with as well! Overall, this movie is action-packed and funny, with enough stunts to satisfy the most jaded connieuseurs of slam-bang flicks, and contains great cinemantography and SFX with the train scenes in the climax! DVD enhancement inmproves it even more, with sound FX that'll blow away your living room!Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson rekindile their teamwork fromWhite Men can't Jump in an action packed thriller which packs punch but lacks focus. This story is all over the place involving two interracial step brothers competeing for a female partners affection (Lopez). The story includes a gambling problem, a bosses irrational behavior, and saving ones brother from the law as he tries to rob a NYC transit money train. Unfortunately firebug scenes were copied and killed a token booth clerk in Brooklyn after this movies release. One problem with this movie is that it alleges it's using a letter B train to Coney Island when the trains used for filming were 4,5 and 6 number cars. The movie was said to be filmed in North Carolna studios however the stations resemble those of the Lexington Ave. Line. Any consious New Yorker knows that they're not passing De Kalb Ave. Why after spending millions of dollars is the simplest research messed up? They should have gotten their subway legend right! Jenifer Lopez looks real good and acts well in a movie that indirectly refers from her the self motivated title of her cd "On the 6" which refers to the 6 subway line. Lot's of mistakes for anyone who knows the subway but some good action scenes aside from the movies implausibility.This film had one good intention: a decent cast. It lacked direction, however, and seemed to be adrift in a sea of identity confusion. Is it a thriller? Not quite. Is it a "buddy" film. Well, not really. It it a romance? Uh-uh. It is a mish-mash of all of the above. There were some excellent action sequences (many incredibly unbelievable), especially in the last 20 minutes. Some of the comic interplay between Wesley and Woody was amusing, but far from their chemistry in "Jump". J-Lo's character served no purpose except to show a little skin. She slowed the pace down for the first hour of the movie, it seemed like watching it in slow motion. It could have been an excellent action-packed buddy film of the Lethal Weapon genre if only the writers offered us a decent script. Instead, we got disconnected plotting and a whole lot of far-fetched antics. And Robert Blake should have "Virginia Baked" tattooed on his forehead. And what was up with Cooper's character? It seemed like the writers of the script came up with an idea for a serial killer/robber plot, but then couldn't figure out what to do with him and wrote him out of the film halfway through without any resolution for his motive or background. Instead, the writers might have just recently spent an evening watching "The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3" and switched tracks, so to speak, and said "hey, this might be a good idea for that new Harrelson/J-Lo/Snipes film we have to provide a script for tomorrow." The writing and direction seems to be spontaneous, and NOT in a good way.I did not expect much from this movie, but since I got a real good deal on it I said why not. Contrary to my original thoughts about this movie, it was actually really good. There aren't many action scenes in this movie, and there shouldn't be. The makers of this did a very good job in balancing action, drama, and suspense themes. Harrelson and Snipes do a spectacular job, as well as Jennifer Lopez. There is one really good fight scene that involves Snipes that you will enjoy. The ending scenes were exciting and suspensful and it has you going for the train robbers. That's all I can say without giving away the movie. But I can say that this movie was perfectly balanced, not too much acton, and not too much drama; you will definetely like this one, especially if you want a break from the typical Hollywood Action crap that is out there today.This is an explosive cocktail of chemistry that pulls the plot from "The Taking of Pelhan 1-2-3 that triggers the rush for the Money Train. If you've ever been to New York City during Christmas season, you will feel the nostalgia of ringing Salvation Army Santas, Squeeching overhead L trains and faceless people rushing home through the dark cold iron city, renders its charm and mystery. You will love it, and just maybe identify with one or more characters. The train robbery will keep you at the edge of your sofa each time you watch it. This is a film that you can add to your inventory and play time and time again especially during the Christmas season.
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