Double Feature

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

A gang of thugs who have hijacked a subway train near New York’s Pelham Station threaten to kill one hostage per minute. Forced to stall the assailants until a ransom is delivered or a rescue is made, transit chief Lt. Garber (Walter Matthau) must somehow ad-lib, con and outmaneuver one of the craftiest, cruelest villains (Robert Shaw) ever. It’s a race against time, and no one knows whether things will end heroically or tragically in this pulse-pounding thrill ride! (MGM)

Across 110th Street

Easily one of the most overlooked movies of the 1970s, Across 110^th Street belongs in the pantheon of seventies NYPD thrillers with The French Connection, The Seven-Ups, Report to the Commissioner and Prince of the City for no-holds-barred action, no-bullshit dialogue and shot-on-location authenticity. Yaphet Kotto, a straight-arrow African-American homicide detective, is paired with racist partner, Anthony Quinn, after the knockover of a Harlem numbers bank leaves both mafia soldiers and black mobsters dead. Quinn knows his way around the Italian-American underworld, including the latest shenanigans of capo Tony Franciosa (Tenebre) and his henchmen. The race is suddenly on to find the lethal thieves before Franciosa and his mob get there first – and make mincemeat out of them. Underrated director Barry Shear cut his teeth churning out “Man from U.N.C.L.E.” episodes, as well as the pop political satire Wild in the Streets and the teenage serial killer opus The Todd Killings. Bobby Womack did the memorable title theme song, which was a Top 20 hit and later used to great effect in Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown. See this one on the big screen for maximum impact.

“What distinguishes Across 110th Street’s bloodletting from that in other Hollywood films of the time is its unsparing inescapability and its matter-of-factness – these qualities give the work its moral charge.” – PopMatters.com

Marc Edward Heuck discusses Across 110th Street on the New Beverly blog.