Denzel Washington in "Unstoppable." (Robert Zuckerman/20th Century Fox)

Director Tony Scott’s flashy visual style and editing techniques may have left me numb after Domino and The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (perhaps it was my slavish devotion to the original film), but with Unstoppable, the filmmaker has found the perfect material to complement his hyperactive imagination.  Engineer Frank Barnes (Denzel Washington, in his fifth film with Scott) is a devoted father of two hot daughters (they both work at Hooters) and an engineer whose years of railroading goes unappreciated by the higher-ups.  Cocky conductor Will Colson (Chris Pine) is a guy with a chip on his shoulder, and his hotheaded bravado makes him a rather bad partner for Barnes.  Their first day together starts off extremely rocky, as Barnes’ old school approach clashes with Colson’s can-do, leave me alone attitude.  When a runaway freight train loaded with toxic chemicals threatens to blast through a Pennsylvania town, the two must work together and save the day, with only a dispatcher (Rosario Dawson) to guide them on their heroic path.  Inspired by a 2001 incident wherein rail workers stopped a runaway train in Toledo, Ohio, Unstoppable is unrelenting; Mr. Scott is more than ready to attack all your senses though his editing, use of sound design, or the strategic employment of his big budget toys (he even employs a helicopter in a preposterous, yet gripping action sequence).  Amidst the flair and the breakneck action (the movie clicks in at a brisk 98 minutes), Unstoppable’s main strength lies in the chemistry between Pine and Washington, as they effectively capture the spirit of two blue-collar workers sacrificing life and limb for the greater good.  As with Star Trek, Pine proves that he’s more than a pretty face, and even though it’s hard to be noticed when filling a screen with Denzel Washington, Pine is no shrinking violet.  Expect a ton of A-list roles to land on Mr. Pine’s lap in the coming years (this generation’s Matt Damon perhaps?), as natural charisma and acting chops are a rare thing in Tinseltown.

Throughout his career, Scott has covered a wide array of genres, and at his creative best he is a first rate storyteller (Crimson Tide, True Romance, Man on Fire).  Unstoppable may not be as complex a narrative as Spy Game or his overlooked effort Deja Vu, but it’s still a riveting yarn.  In a world where directors hitch their wagons to any superhero or sci-fi project that filters through Hollywood’s predictable pipeline, it is refreshing to see Scott, now in his mid ’60s, still playing with his train sets.  Sometimes old school filmmaking is the way to go, and Unstoppable, with its lack of computer generated effects and abundance of cinematic brio, stays on track, even if it’s loaded with toxic chemicals.

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posted by Greg Srisavasdi