In spite of its knee jerk camera-pan-focus-jump visual tic, "Unstoppable" is one hot nail-biter of an action/suspense movie.
Reliable heavyweight-actor Denzel Washington works his magic as Frank, a veteran Pennsylvania railroad engineer. Frank has the awkward task of training his twentysomething replacement Will (well played by Chris Pine) on a day when a 47-car train loaded with toxic acid is traveling head-on in their direction at more than 70-miles-per-hour.
Harry Gregson-Williams's ear-tweaking score sets an appropriate tone for the suspense. Staple New York actors Rosario Dawson and Kevin Corrigan give nuanced supporting performances as railroad professionals.
Screenwriter Mark Bomback periodically gets a little too cute with the dialogue, but he also laces the drama with some neatly placed grace notes of humor to temper the film's palpable tension.
Director Tony Scott might be doing penitence for his disastrous "Taking of Pelham 123" remake. If that's the case, all is forgiven.
"Unstoppable" earns every bit of squirming anxiousness it arouses in its audience. It's a beautifully executed action movie that's well worth seeing on a big screen.
Rated PG-13. 98 mins.
