Assalto Sobre Trilhos

The late 80s, early 90s was THE decade of buddy-cop comedy/action movies, and this is just one of those in a long line of them which graced (well more or less) our movie-screens. Every one has their favourite, from the classic Lethal Weapon series, back in the days when Mel Gibson was still sane, to the much later Bad Boys, the film that truly launched Will Smith's film career. Money Train was written by the same writer who gave the latter of those buddy-cop movies, and it really shows. You find the same kind of street-slang jokes and buddy camaraderie in both movies, but whereas the two cops in Bad Boys were childhood friends, in Money Train they are actually brothers. Well foster-brothers, which explains the fact one is black, one is white, and cue all the imaginable jokes you can think of with this type of sibling affinity. And not only are they foster-brothers, but partners in some New-York cop department which protects the Underground tube system.

Unfortunately, the chemistry between Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson isn't even close to that between Smith and Lawrence. They each respectively turn-out decent performances, Snipes is as cool as ever and Harrelson does his usual quirky, slightly goofy routine, which is all very entertaining; however they just never quite jell together. Then you add to the equation Jennifer Lopez as the women interest, in what was her first major big-screen roll. This only has two positive effects, first and obviously she does add some female charm to this 99% male cast, and secondly she makes her present acting seem to be of the same caliber as Diane Keaton!

As with a number of other mediocre cop movies, one major shortcoming is the lack of a distinct malignant unyielding adversary; someone to truly challenge our heroes while stimulating the audiences' affection for them. Here, the characters' "nemesis" are an uninspired boss/head-of-department tyrant type who only cares about protecting his "money-train"(which transports the Whole of the Undergrounds' cash); and a grossly under-used Chriss Cooper. His pyromaniac thief character seems either to have been hugely cut from the original script, or simply appended at the last minute to add some kind of dramatic tension.

An entertaining movie with a very decent script, to be watched without any too high expectations. The beginning drags-on for a while but the pace does build-up to an acceptable level after a while. Money Train could have been a lot better if it had been handled by a more competent director.

Why everyone is so mad about this movie! It's not that bad! I'm sure, the actors and the director Joseph Ruben (He's one of my favorite ones) do a good job, especially Jennifer Lopez (She's so hot!). Well, of course that film had to borrow a lot from Andrei Konchalovsky's masterpiece Runaway Train, but anyway, that's a good action thriller.

Action is an interesting film genre. You go in expecting little and are pleasantly surprised if you get more. Films like Face/Off, Die Hard, Speed, Under Siege, while formulaic, were all able to offer the viewer more than they expected going in and so have become beloved classics of the genre. The Money Train tries to be more than a lot of the action films that came out and simply disappeared in the early 90s, but falls a little short. While the film certainly isn't bad, it isn't considered a classic of the genre, and, while not a financial failure, relatively few people saw it and even fewer remember it.

The film reunites the stars of White Men Can't Jump, Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes as a pair of law enforcement officers John (Snipes) and Charlie (Harrelson) who basically decide to steal from their boss (Robert Blake) who is a real piece of work. John has a hot girlfriend Grace (a pre Selena Jennifer Lopez) and Charlie has a gambling problem. Sound familiar? There are some funny moments and the dramatic scenes between Snipes and Harrelson are excellent. But aside from these, there really aren't any memorable moments. While the pairing of Snipes and Harrelson isn't tired, it doesn't have the same impact it had on their previous outing. Blake is menacing and odious but his character is not a believable or effective villain. Chris Cooper, who has a smaller role in this as Torch, would have been a better antagonist.

Money Train is OK and a reasonably entertaining way to spend a couple of hours, but it is also a missed opportunity. Snipes, Lopez, Harrelson and Blake try hard, but the finished product is less than the sum of its parts, and that's possibly the most frustrating thing of all.

I am not a huge fan of thrillers, but once in a while there are some that surprise me. I just prefer thrillers that aren't that violent or gory and I had low expectations for ''Money Train''. Thankfully, I was wrong. While the movie is far from a must-see, it was an ok and enjoyable time-passer.

The leads (played by Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes) are two foster brothers that work as transit cops. While Snipes' character has a good life, Harrelson's life is a mess. Then, as a sort of personal revenge, he decides to steal the money train (that carries the New York subway's workers' salaries). But when something goes wrong will his brother save him? See the film.

The bottom line is that the movie is fun. Along with the two leads also Jennifer Lopez (in one of her first movies and one of her best) and veteran Robert Blake (few years before he retired) give nice support. The actors' performances are ok and the story is not great, but decent.

The movie doesn't have much of a plot but it's still a pretty entertaining movie. Which features great performances from the cast. It's nice for a Saturday night at the movies.

3(***)out of 4(****)stars