The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974 film)

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three
Original film poster by Mort Künstler
Directed by	Joseph Sargent
Screenplay by	Peter Stone
Based on	The Taking of Pelham One Two Three 1973 novel by John Godey
Produced by	Gabriel Katzka Edgar J. Scherick
Starring	Walter Matthau Robert Shaw Martin Balsam Héctor Elizondo
Cinematography	Owen Roizman
Edited by	Gerald B. Greenberg Robert Q. Lovett
Music by	David Shire
Production companies	Palomar Pictures[1] Palladium Productions[1]
Distributed by	United Artists
Release date	October 2, 1974 (1974-10-02)
Running time	104 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3.8 million[2]

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (also known as The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3) is a 1974 American crime drama film^[1] directed by Joseph Sargent, produced by Gabriel Katzka and Edgar J. Scherick, and starring Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam, and Héctor Elizondo.^[3] Peter Stone adapted the screenplay^[3] from the 1973 novel of the same name written by Morton Freedgood under the pen name John Godey.

The title is derived from the train's radio call sign, which is based upon where and when the train began its run; in this case, the train originated at the Pelham Bay Park station in the Bronx at 1:23 p.m. For several years after the film was released, the New York City Transit Authority would not schedule any train to leave Pelham Bay Park station at 1:23.^[4]

The film received critical acclaim. Several critics called it one of 1974's finest films, and it was a box office success.^[5] As in the novel, the film follows a group of criminals taking the passengers hostage inside a New York City Subway car for ransom. Musically, it features "one of the best and most inventive thriller scores of the 1970s".^[6] It was remade in 1998 as a television film and in 2009 as a theatrical film.