It's about a train, super-fast one, in Japan which is going from some other place to Tokyo and some fiend has slapped an unknown (at the outset) bomb or number of bombs on the train. In good Speed (1994) fashion, the train is going to blow up if the driver drops below 100kph. The bomber phones into to central railway control with a demand for one billion Yen (which I think is about half a million pounds) but doesn't want it from the train company or government, but from every citizen of Japan chipping in! It's not very clear how that was supposed to happen, but when the news breaks, some smart-Alec Content Creator who happens to be on the train breaks the news to social media and starts a fund to raise the money.
A lot of the travellers are very annoying, as we have come to expect with this kind of film, and the viewer decides for themselves which one (or ones) they'd like to see get their comeuppance first! Meanwhile, back in the control centre, the number of growing officials, government bods and engineers is growing, working to find a solution whilst keeping other trains and everybody out of the way as they find a clear path and strategy to ensure that the train stays above the speed.
The centre of the drama is around the conductor chappie and his initially enthusiastic young newbie assistant and how he behaves to try to handle things at the train end. If you like trains, there's actually lots to get stuck into here as they work with each other to route, plan, map, adjust, work to find a solution. There's also plenty to learn about Japanese culture and their approach to efficiency and making sure everything is as it should be. Lots of polite bowing to each other and focus on being good to others over yourself. However, there's a bunch of rowdy schoolgirls onboard and young lads who are clearly not so much with the old ways and I guess representing the shift away from traditonal values and culture in the country.
Anyway, we follow closely the perils of the driver of the train, the conductors, the travellers and those back at base throughout and it really is a pretty good thrill-ride. I really wasn't expecting it to be so, so it was a nice surprise. There seems to be three stages to the story as everyone works to find a way out of it - when one problem is fixed, up pops another, then another - so a triple thrill-ride really! There's also a couple of nice twists in the storyline, so I won't spoil that, nor the outcomes.
Pretty well shot on a budget, decently-enough acted by most (though I don't know any of the actors), claustrophobic when needed, tension and suspense here and there - and even the special effects are decent-enough too. A nice watch, which I ended up being pleased that I had.
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