The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3

I remember the book “The Taking of Pelham One Two Three” because it sat on the back of the commode in my parents’ bathroom for something like five years. I don’t remember the 1974 movie (I was eight years old). The 2009 version, “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3” (One Two Three? That’s too many words – things are faster paced these days.), is a sometimes-too-stylish, quirky thriller about a subway hostage/ransom event with an interesting criminal twist. Not bad, but when someone asks, “Can you name 10 Denzel Washington movies?” I doubt this one will come to your mind.

While You Were Sleeping

There’s so much I want to say about “While You Were Sleeping (1995), I don’t know where to start. When I finally saw it, 19 years after it came out, it was a revelation. A romantic comedy where you don’t have to cut off your balls (spoiler alert) in order to enjoy it. Sandra Bullock does the vulnerable thing so well, you wonder where it comes from (Then you see how she is today, and you know.). My first wife had such a crush on Bill Pullman. After seeing him here, I now know what she saw (briefly) in me.