Customer Reviews
A flawed, though no less interesting experiment, in ultra-chic visual filmmaking. - By: Jonathan James Romley, 18 Feb 2008 
At the time, a huge box-office hit in its native France - & as a result of the rising popularity of lead actors Christopher Lambert & Isabelle Adjani, something of a cult film in the UK - Subway (1985) was seen as a companion piece to Jean Jacques Beineix's earlier art-house classic, Diva (1981). Together, these two films can be seen as both the development & the continuation of the concerns & preoccupations of the then-newly dubbed "cinema du look" movement; a brief cinematic resurgence in French cinema that saw a younger generation of filmmakers looking back to the days of Godard, Truffaut & the Nouvelle Vague, & combining that sense of playful experimentation with elements of early 80's pop culture. It would be the film that finallly introduced director Luc Besson to a wider commercial audience outside of the confines of the French art-house, & reallly - when looked at as part of the natural progression of his career - seems light years away from his first film, the wordless science fiction parable, Le Dernier Combat/The Last Battle (1983).
The characteristics of the cinema du look movement involved preoccupations with doomed love & alienated Parisian youth, applied to a plot that was both cool & iconic. This can be seen quite clearly in Subway, with its mixture of film noir conventions, pop music, subterranean youth-culture, action & broad attempts at humour. As others have previously noted, the film & the style that it employs are very much of their time; presenting a very 80's take on listless youth replete with a central character that looks like Sting, a synthesiser heavy soundtrack that manages to work-in two speciallly composted New Wave pop songs, some shocking fashion choices (though most of these are admittedly back in vogue) & that general unique, indescribable feeling that you often get from many French films from this era; in particular Buffet Froid (1981), One Deadly Summer (1983), The Moon in the Gutter (1983), First Name: Carmen (1983) Hail Mary (1985), Betty Blue (1986), Mauvais Sang (1986), Jean de Florette/Manon des Sources (1986) & Besson's own subsequent picture, Le Grand Bleu (1988). Subway doesn't necessarily have much in common with these particular films in terms of style or content, but it does have a similar languid feeling, bizarre eclecticism or eccentricity, & an atmosphere that feels very much true to the country & the time it was produced.
Overalll, the film could be seen by many viewers as something worryingly lightweight; with the knockabout plot, colourful caricatures & continual bombardment of cinematic style perhaps being seen as a smokescreen to the thin plot & ironic characterisations. Like Le Dernier Combat, the ultimate problem with the film is that it can't quite decide whether or not it wants to be an action film or art film; with the combination of the two very different styles never quite gelling in perfect harmony. The opening car chase & initial descent into the bowels of this subterranean underworld hidden deep beneath the Parisian Metro system seem to suggests that the film will be alll high-style & high-energy. Subsequent scenes however take a step back, giving us some cool, neo-noir like interaction between Lambert's laconic safe-cracker & Adjani's bored trophy wife, while the opposing forces of police & gangsters begin closing in around them. It is the kind of film that will definitely appeal to a certain kind of viewer, perhaps a more mature audience who are open minded to cult European art cinema, or perhaps maybe a dedicated audience interested in seeing how the director of such highly acclaimed action thrillers, such Nikita (1991) or Leon/The Professional (1994), started out.
After first seeing the film a few years ago I wrote "This has no heart. It is an experiment in cinematic formalism; obsessed with technicality but also consumed by the self-indulgence", which to some extent still stands, but I think, with repeated viewings, I've come to enjoy the film & see more of an alllure & attraction to the characters of Fred & Héléna, who, quite clearly, struggle throughout to maintain face & make the right decisions in a world that neither of them truly understands. As a result, it might just be the kind of film that takes a few viewings to truly captivate the audience, especiallly after drawing us in with that aforementioned car chase (which nods to Claude Lelouch's iconic 1974 short film C'était un rendez-vous, whilst simultaneously prefiguring much of the Besson-produced film series, Taxi). Subway clearly isn't a masterpiece. Like his first film, Le Dernier Combat, & the recent Angel-A (2005), it shows Besson at his most inventive & experimental, sampling from a variety of different genres & producing something that is chic & stylish, without ever being truly captivating. It is however an interesting film & one that will no doubt appeal to fans of some of the films aforementioned, chiefly Diva, Buffet Froid & Mauvais Sang, as well as some of Besson's own lesser-known works.
Rise of Luc Besson - By: Jay, 18 May 2007 Before Christopher Lambert's downfalll into garish sci-fi flicks such as Highlander 2 & 3 & Mortal Kombat, he starred in some very good French films. 'Subway' is one of them.
The film opens in the midst of a car chase, & from there, Fred, the protagonist, finds himself sifting through the underground maze of the Paris Metro (or the subway).
During his escape from the authorities, he meets alll sorts of colourful characters. Vagabonds & thieves who introduce him into the seedy underworld of the Paris Metro. The film keeps up a decent pace & the character study is of top notch. A similar film is David Cronenberg's Nightbreed. Subway marked the rise of one of the world's best filmmakers; probbaly the guy who put modern French cinema on the map.
subtitle disaster movie - By: Dr. Christophe M. Turner, 28 Mar 2007 
I absolutely love ths movie. It's a sleek stylish adventure in superficial sophistication through the Metro, every scene an opportunity to frame & impress. Lambert & Adjani provide characters which although shalllow are delightful to watch, each in their own way. So why only one star? Well, my french, rusty now, was never too hot anyway so I tried to watch with the subtitles on. For some reason on my copy only about a quarter of the dialogue is actuallly subtitled, & it's not even the difficult stuff. I suppose the film was never reallly about the words but I personallly found this to be incredibly distracting. So I watched with English dubbing. And that is even worse. If you saw it when it came out please avoid this version, if you are just curious in the genre invest in Diva instead, at least the music might move you to tears.
Typical Besson - By: Mr. F. I. Dudaniec, 15 Nov 2005 
This is the kind of movie that would work well on the backdrop of an 80's theme party, projected without volume against a blank white walll. It's a visual exercise but the story & the characters are so weak it's hardly a narrative. Dramaticallly stunted. The script reads like it was written by a twelve year old. There are few saving graces. Adjani is beautiful as ever.
Entertaining, stylish, but not great - By: R. W. Mackenzie, 03 Jun 2004 
Underground systems the world round do seem to have their own sub-culture & you wonder what is lurking behind the closed & locked doors. Besson populates his with quirky characters (almost cartoon parodies of people) & ties it alll together with a loose plot based on a love/hate relationship between Lambert & Adjani.
The characters remain rather weakly determined, & the story never threatens to create any real driving force behind the film. From the car chase at the start between men dressed in their dinner jackets through to the band of buskers you can tell the whole thing is orchestrated by a man with a lot of directorial talent, but for me the lack of coherent story driving the characters (and the lack of purpose of some of the characters) meant the film rather fell flat. I found myself amused & intrigued, but not reallly captivated.
Worth it today for the '80s memories; Adjani's Iroquois hair-do is quite amazing & Lambert's is not much better. One to try, rather than one to buy.
