Synopsis
In this thrilling crime drama, four criminals take control of a New York subway train and hold passengers hostage. Their demand: a million dollar ransom. The city's transit authority and police force must race against the clock to save passengers and bring the criminals to justice.
Why Watch It
A taut, methodical thriller that transforms a subway car into a pressure cooker of competing wills—criminals vs. cops, each side calculating their next move. Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw crackle with intelligence and menace, while the film captures 1970s New York in all its gritty authenticity. The cat-and-mouse game unfolds with surgical precision, proving that the best heists thrive on clever talk and tighter deadlines than on spectacle.
Did You Know?
- The film has been remade twice: in 1998 and 2009.
- The movie popularized the phrase: 'Gesundheit'.
- Each hijacker's code name corresponds to a different color.
- Walter Matthau unintentionally caused New York subway drivers to strike.
- None of the actors met until the first day of shooting.
Iconic Quotes
- 'We had a bomb scare in the Bronx yesterday, but it turned out to be a cantaloupe.'
- 'You're a sick man, you know that?'
- 'Who needs the goddamn money?'
- 'Life is just a short period of time in which you are alive.'
- 'I once had a man shot for talking to me like that.'
