Eastern Railroad Discussion > The Movie Unstoppable

I saw UNSTOPPABLE on Sunday and thoroughly enjoyed this movie.
Denzel Washington and Chris Pine turn in great, believable performances.
Rosario Dawson as the terminal superintendent, well not so much.
Action. Action. Action.
If you railfans well let the few technical flaws pass (and there are relatively few) you will enjoy this thriller as much as I did.
I had more trouble with the TV News part of it than the railroading flaws. I am a railfan, a TV News Producer and a FOX employee so I won't hit this too hard but, I want to work at FOX 43 in Stanton, Ohio. Those guys can fly their helicopter at near-ground level next to a speeding freight train. Inside of one-hour they can generate 3-D diagrams of what the impending crash will look like, and they can have live crews positioned at every major event along this linear disaster.
This is nit-picking though.
Unstoppable is a great action film you will all enjoy.

Danny Harmon
Tampa

I guess that's why FOX is #1 in news! We thought the same thing - "Man those news crews are all over it!"

Not to mention that thing was a big as the Chrysler Building!
Gonut

Saturday Night Live had a skit-takeoff thing on the movie. The guys in the cab become really good buds.

Flying close: a buyer we worked with at one of our big customers in the 80's repeated the story several times that, while flying WWII bombers in Nevada, they would pick out a fast freight, pulled by steam, come low alongside, and stick a wing inside an open boxcar door.

Might be a desert legend.

David

milkcow Wrote:
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> Saturday Night Live had a skit-takeoff thing on
> the movie. The guys in the cab become really good
> buds.
>
> Flying close: a buyer we worked with at one of our
> big customers in the 80's repeated the story
> several times that, while flying WWII bombers in
> Nevada, they would pick out a fast freight, pulled
> by steam, come low alongside, and stick a wing
> inside an open boxcar door.
>
> Might be a desert legend.
>

I'm guessin' that's a desert legend. A bomber couldn't fly that slow and stay airborne, especially so close to the ground.

After the weekend at the box office, Unstoppable could not get to #1 which is still held on by Megamind 3D, Unstoppable ended up in the 2nd spot

Jason Trew
East Ridge, TN

It was a good movie, would go see it again, one flaw I seen was the begining where he starts up the GEs and they sounded like EMDs....OOPS! Like watching a Pentrex vidio with bad sound dubbing. But overall, the movie was great!

fortunately the average ticket buyer wouldn't know the sound of a GE or EMD prime mover from a Studebaker.

Even with full flaps and gear down, it's a stretch. If the wingtip hits the front of the door frame, plane spins into the train. It hits the back of the door frame, it spins away.

Agree: Desert legend. But interesting to think about. - Jerry


toledopatch Wrote:
>
> I'm guessin' that's a desert legend. A bomber
> couldn't fly that slow and stay airborne,
> especially so close to the ground.

jerryheng Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Even with full flaps and gear down, it's a
> stretch. If the wingtip hits the front of the
> door frame, plane spins into the train. It hits
> the back of the door frame, it spins away.
>
> Agree: Desert legend. But interesting to think
> about. - Jerry
>
>
> toledopatch Wrote:
> >
> > I'm guessin' that's a desert legend. A bomber
> > couldn't fly that slow and stay airborne,
> > especially so close to the ground.

My father-in-law was on bombers in WWII and I asked him about this. He had never heard that story and doubted that it could be true. He said even the old planes that they used for training would have been too fast to do such a thing.

I saw the movie Saturday and really enjoyed it. It was a great action movie, with surprisingly good suspense. I also thought the Mr. Washington and Mr. Pine did a great job.

I'll buy the DVD too.

I saw it today, and, I too thought it was a great movie. I will be going to see it again. Bring on the DVD!

Danny, I was hoping you'd write a review. Appreciate what you had to say and glad to hear the story is believable even with a few tomatoes on the window sill. My wife and I don't get to the theatre very often preferring to be patient and see things later in the comforts of home but we'll make an exception on this one. Thanks.

BTW, enjoy your narration work on the Herron productions we have. The SP 2 volume set with live sound is terrific even with a somewhat sparsely worded script (which I know you didn't write).

Review - The Allegheny Western Railway engineer (referred incorrectly as a hostler) is switching a cut of cars at their rail yard in Pennsylvania. Bad switch (lined against his train), engineer Dewey decides to leave AWR 777 cab to line switch. He's unable to get back on (based loosely on CSXT 8888 incident in 2001). Train is in run 8 headed for train load of visiting school kids - the rail action picks up pace.

The AWR 1206 local switch crew is new. They have their differences and own personal problems. They banter about family and keeping focused on the job. Yardmaster Connie keeps busy coordinating between dispatcher(s) and management - a thankless task! Interaction is good - not everyone agrees how to handle the situation. FRA guy plays it cool and provides assistance to Yardmaster Connie.

AWR 1206 gets on the main and barely reaches a siding before AWR 777 slams through its rear end boxcar. Attempts to stop "coaster" (runaway) don't work using derails. Train speed and impeding 15 MPH curve on a bridge at Stanton, PA, (filmed at Bellaire, Ohio) might result in a major catastrophe - action and helicopter views will add to the drama.

Filmed on the Wheeling & Lake Erie in November 2009 the equipment is realistic but the story line gets stretched. Enjoy the ride! Don't sweat the details (liberties) taken to deliver an action thriller.

Well worth the price of admission on a wintry day.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/15/10 19:20 by cozephyr.

ATSF90East Wrote:
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> fortunately the average ticket buyer wouldn't know
> the sound of a GE or EMD prime mover from a
> Studebaker.

The Studebaker was the smooth sounding one!

has anyone brought up the flashing red/stop CPL??

I've never seen a stop signal flash...but then again I've seen seen two trains on a collision course...

will_astle Wrote:
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> has anyone brought up the flashing red/stop CPL??
>

I did, in one of the four dozen other threads about this movie. Figure it was a "visual aid" for the casual movie viewer.

I enjoyed it. It was closer to real railroading than any of the other runaway train movies I have seen.

I saw it and had a good time in spite of the gaffs. I think the some of the dialougue was made so the average movie goer could follow the story not knowing the argot of the rails.
Some people said that they really like the sound. I did too except for one thing...Whenever they were in the cab of the "5,000HP" SD-40, it was quiet as a church, no throbbing prime mover or rail sounds at all. Maybe they decided the would be too distracting, I don't know.
Missed it though myself. I think that drumming sound would add to the excitement.
Good movie, I'd see it again.

I too enjoyed the film despite the gaffs.

Were all of the outdoor shots really shot on the W&LE, or was some of it CGI? As a Seattleite, I don't know enough about the W&LE territory to be able to tell for myself.