Runaway Train (Part 2) - The Body Count Rises

So now that I look back, I read this bit of trivia that Manny actually wasn't a killer - he cracks open safes; the original writers of Runaway Train didn't believe a murderer could get so much respect from the rest of the prisoners. I don't know what went through their heads at the time, but my reasoning is that anyone has the propensity to kill; it takes a genius to crack open a safe and not start off the alarm bells. A safe-cracker could also have access to prison keys if he knows the prison inside and out. No wonder the entire prison rejoices whenever something good happens to him!
Anyway, as one can see from the post title, there are more casualties, even though not as graphic as in the opening scenes. We never actually see them die, but one thing's for certain. The film takes no prisoners (no pun intended).
Buck, as I see it, never really experienced life the way Manny did; as much as he denies it, he's just "a punk", a lazy, cowardly one who never thinks things through. Why else does he keep worrying about dying, going into a sewer, and having a lousy pair of shoes? The boy's a one-track mind. Obviously, the guy's incredibly short on brains, and he complains so much about his feet, I'm surprised Manny held back until the moment they talk about their plans after the ordeal ends. I thought he was in jail for being a petty theif, but statutory rape's even worse. Their ideals clash in a scene worthy of an Academy Award. While one crook wants to fritter away his fortune on wine, women, and song, the other wants to make a decent living. It works not only because of the chemistry between the two actors, but also because of timing and visceral energy. Manny's idea of holding "on to that job like gold because it is gold" and his clear-cut language indicates that he may have been a upper-middleclassman who may have fallen on hard times, and Buck's responses show that he likes to feed off thrills and live for the moment. Manny thinks things through, while Buck does not.
Mr. Bennett keeps on calling Manny a killer, and it's true that he was involved in one of the prisoners' deaths, but he's still no killer. However, I can agree that they represent Jesus and Jonah; calling Manny the Messiah may be a bit of a stretch *(I almost expected the Warden to come out screaming "He's not the Messiah! He's a very naughty boy!"), but I can see how Buck could be the Jonah archetype, the one who gets swallowed by a whale and changes for the better, so to speak. I'm not sure if anyone else noticed this, but now that we're talking about religion, the telephone (telegraph?) poles represent crosses. Just my two cents.
The iron train itself represents fate. No one can stop it as it surges down the tracks, bringing its passengers for the ride and destroying anything that gets in its way. Our lives, the movie says, are a runaway train. As much as others may try to keep it in check, it is up to us how we handle the situation. The engineer may be dead, the passengers on the caboose may be pushing daisies, and the rail-worker may soon bite the dust, but the train waits for no one. Another blogger also observed that it could represent Manny. Both have an iron will, both are larger than life, and both have lived through the good and the bad. They are also hard to control, as shown with the frantic exchange between the railway company members and Manny's interaction with Warden Ranken.
If Ranken wasn't the head of the prison, he would have been one of its inmates. He is sadistic, he is calculating, and he always has ulterior motives. By plotting the escapees' deaths and confiding "[Manny] would do the same thing I would do", he is on his way to being a murderer. Unlike our protagonists, he has more power than they will ever know. I don't think we wanna know what kind of "fun" he's talking about.
The last remark is just a little something on Eddie, one of the honchos of the railway company. He must be an incredible dunce! Of COURSE the passengers should know about the runaway! OF COURSE they should've worked harder to stop that train!
Sorry about that. The man obviously has no experience in running a railway company. His ethics are unsafe and uncouth. All he cares about is the money. Unfortunately, a lot of businessmen are like that. They care for no one but themselves.
Maybe we'll be introduced to DeMornay's character tomorrow. Maybe the railway worker doesn't get killed in the collision. One thing's for certain. The poster at the start makes the trio look incredibly ghostly; there are no bright colors involved. The only areas with the most lighting are Manny and the titular runaway train, which says a lot if one reads my entire post. We'll see how everything works out.
*Reference to Monty Python's Life of Brian