Big Screen Blurb: Unstoppable

It's like the advertising slogan says, "You Can't Stop a Trane". Well, in this case, it's: "You Can't Stop a Train". Specifically, number 777 headed unmanned toward Southern Pennsylvania with plenty of highly toxic and explosive chemicals on-board. Unstoppable combines Academy Winner Denzel Washington and up-and-comer Chris Pine on the railways of the Keyston State trying to stave off certain disaster.

Unstoppable is based on a true story that took place in Ohio in 2001. It all started in alarmingly easy fashion thanks to a recipe that included one part incompetent and one part stupid. Railroad employee, Dewey,  left the train unmanned to correct a line just ahead of the engine, but wait, he incorrectly set the brake and was a little too slow to get back on-board. This left "a missile the size of the Chrysler Building" barrelling down the tracks just waiting to leave a nice pile of rubble at a final stopping point. That's when our heroes get involved. That would be the combo of veteran engineer, Frank (Washington) and rookie conductor, Will (Pine). Will is new to the railroad game and his cockiness hasn't quite caught up with his talent. Further, Will's mind is elsewhere, experiencing some marital woes while adjusting to a new job. Frank, meanwhile, is about to lose his job. Sure, he's a 26-year railroad vet, but Frank got a 90-day pink slip notice about...oh...72-days previously. However, the two become the company's last hope to save the day, including thousands of lives and millions upon millions of dollars. Yadayadayada...Denzel fights the train and the train...well, you'll see.

It's 4.0 Stars in my book. Not only do Washington and Pine make for a great combo, it's a healthy mix of interesting characters, a solid storyline with a strong element of truth and plenty of conversation starters. All that makes for quite the big screen gem. It showcases corporate greed and the desire to maintain a healthy bottom line in the wake of potential human loss (conversation starter number one). It spins a good tale revolving around the relationships of its main characters, while teaching that love is, indeed, able to overcome the squabbles generated in every day life (conversation starter number two). Overall, there's plenty to see here and much to talk about. Washington is, well...he's Denzel Washington, no further descriptive needed; and, Chris Pine is emerging as a top-notch Hollywood talent. Who says nothing good came from Chips!?! At least Sarge added a stallion to the fold on his own way to a lengthy acting run himself. Yeah, Unstoppable is worth a look and you might want to see it Big.

That's it for me...True...OUT!