Unstoppable

Director: Tony Scott

Run Time: 1 hrs. 38 min.

Rating: PG-13

The Bouw-Man.

If you are someone who enjoys films with plenty of real-life action sequences, it would seem that “Unstoppable” is exactly what the doctor ordered.  The plot seems pretty well laid out.  You have a young conductor (Chris Pine) teamed with a veteran train engineer (Denzel Washington), in a race against time to stop an unmanned runaway train containing poisonous gas and combustible liquids.  Throw in another train containing a bunch of school children (apparently in harm’s way), and you’ve created the human drama to accompany the fiery action.  From the trailer it seems apparent that this is the Chris Pine’s character first day on the job.  Do you remember the last time a Denzel Washington character mentored a young individual on their first day?  That would be 2001’s “Training Day,” in which Washington won his second Academy Award.  Something tells me his role in “Unstoppable” is a little different than his “Training Day” turn.     

 

In the end, we all know the train will be stopped one way or another.  One can deduct that probably the only question audience members may have at this point is how many people (including the main characters), if any, die during this intense problematic situation.  For the answer to this question, check out “Unstoppable” this weekend.  The action should play well on the big screen, even if the story may be limited in terms of the surprise element.

 

Prediction.

The last time Denzel Washington starred in a story about a train, was the 2009 remake “Taking of Pelham 1 2 3.”  Ironically the train in that film wasn’t moving for the majority of the time, while the train in “Unstoppable” is doing nothing but moving.  Maybe this justifies Washington’s choice of picking a film that is completely different.  “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3” made approximately $23.4 million during its opening weekend, and that was during the month of June.  I think I’ll dial it down 10% from that total, and predict a $21 million haul for “Unstoppable” this weekend.

Opening Weekend Gross: $21 Million

Noodles.

To say that I was excited to see a movie about a runaway train would be a huge lie. The only thing that makes this movie something other than a straight to video release, (much like its predecessor) is that its starring Denzel Washington. He's the kind of movie star that has shown in the past to be excellent at movie selection. So now when faced with a tired idea, in a cliched scenario, you hope that the players in this melodrama will give the piece some new energy to make it all worthwhile. 

Prediction.

Despite my feelings that the premise of this movie isn't original, I really think it has a chance to make big bucks. The reviews are mostly positive, and like I said Denzel in a picture, just makes a movie better. So I think this film will live up to its name and own the weekend box office, perhaps playing second fiddle only to the currently popular and  kid friendly Megamind.

Opening Weekend: Gross: $22 Million

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