Action Movie Anatomy hosts Ben Bateman and Andrew Ghai break down The Taking of Pelham 123 with guest hosts Josh Macuga and Ben Begley! The Taking of Pelham 123 is a 2009 American thriller film directed by Tony Scott, and starring Denzel Washington andJohn Travolta. It is a film adaptation of the novel by Morton Freedgood (writing under the pseudonym John Godey), and is aremake of the original 1974 film adaptation, which was also remade in 1998 as a TV film. Production began in March 2008, and it was released on June 12, 2009.