Is The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 scary?

Only a little. The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 has a few tense moments, nothing that follows you to bed.

How gory is The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3?

Light gore and strong violence.

What is The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 rated, and is it OK for kids?

No. It is rated R, with strong violence and frequent strong language.

The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (2009)

Film · 1h 46m · Rated R

Action, Crime, Thriller

A subway dispatcher faces off with a criminal mastermind as a hijacked train hurtles through the city.

Suspenseful and pulpy. A full-attention watch at full speed. Emotionally it is heavy.

Not on a US subscription service as of Oct 27, 2026.

Five more like this Get the app

The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 parents guide

Of what we could confirm, nothing runs past an R: strong violence and frequent strong language.

Scare: Mildly scary; A few tense or eerie moments.
Jump scares: A couple; One or two sudden jolts.
Gore: Light gore; Some blood or injury, briefly.
Violence: Strong violence; Violence is frequent or intense.
Sex and nudity: None flagged; It is rated R, so treat our zero as unconfirmed.
Language: Strong; Frequent strong profanity or slurs.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

Three questions

Is The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 scary?: Only a little. The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 has a few tense moments, nothing that follows you to bed.
How gory is The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3?: Light gore and strong violence.
What is The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 rated, and is it OK for kids?: No. It is rated R, with strong violence and frequent strong language.

What is The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 about?

Armed men hijack a New York City subway train, holding the passengers hostage in return for a ransom, and turning an ordinary day's work for dispatcher Walter Garber into a face-off with the mastermind behind the crime.

Does it have a happy ending? (spoiler-safe)

There is a twist, and that is all we are saying.