Firestarter

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source: Firestarter

I don't know exactly what I was expecting from the remake, but I DID expect it to be good. I was disappointed, VERY disappointed. I thought the opening was bizarre, psychedelic flashback to the 60's. Blurred picture, echoing voices, interviews just did nothing for me. And, the actors didn't pull me in. The mother's part was excellent, but awfully graphic when showing her burns. The ticking sound as the father used his "push" was idiotic. It looked like he needed to push an "on" button hidden in his neck! Sorry to say, I won't watch this version again. I think the original was far better. In fact, I'm going to watch it now to get this version out of my head.

Coincidentally I read the novel by Stephen King only some 6 months ago, so I was pretty anxious to see this new movie-adaptation. Well, it turned out as a huge disappointment. Not so much because they let the story err substantially away from the book, - film-makers have every right to make their own choices -, but because it's basically a bad movie. The narrative is so fragmented, that it's very hard to follow. The whole background of Charley's powers is done away with in flashy flashbacks during the opening credits. The character Rainbird seems to come out-of nowhere, and the connection he abruptly claims to feel with Charley is totally incomprehensible. The mental U-turn that Charley in the end makes from frightened but morally scrupulous little kid to a relentless killing-machine is just as mind-boggling. As is the end: Charley and Rainbird hand-in-hand heading to a joined future (it's almost an insult to the Stephen King novel!). The special effects are okay, but after three or four of these fire-blazes it becomes a bit tedious. Apart from the action- and fire-filled moments, the rest of the movie is extremely talkative and slow-paced. Ryan Kiera Armstrong does a great job, but the part of her father is rather wasted on Zack Efron, it's so trivial. The only thing I liked was the strong music score, by John Carpenter no less, it's extremely creepy and full of looming doom. But even here I had reservations: it didn't really fit such a (wannabe) action-filled blockbuster movie. All in all: a waste of my time! I would advise to read the novel, it's really great!

Jeepers Hollywood you really have lost the plot. Clearly all the writers are gone. Another remake. Cannot you for once come up with one original screenplay. Superheroes and remakes. No wonder Europe is the leader in film making. Ah well. Go woke go broke. Good luck.

This is a mostly enjoyable movie that keeps you invested. I like the premise and the musical score. Unfortunately the pacing is poor with some scenes where the movie comes to a halt. And it builds up to a payoff that is fine but not fully satisfying. I compare it to the much better Brightburn (8 stars) which is so much darker with a significantly more satisfying payoff. I had a good time with Firestarter and Zac Efron continues to prove that he belongs. But there isn't enough payoff, substance, depth or mental stimulation to warrant multiple viewings. (1 viewing, opening Thursday 5/12/2022)

Very poor, poor effects, poor story, cheesy, so disappointed with this. If you are going to remake a cult classic, then have a look at what made it a classic to start. This is just a lifeless boring sham. If you loved the original film, give this a miss, if you haven't seen the original, then it might just about keep you awake.

Right, well this was a fully and wholly unnecessary remake of the 1984 movie of the same name. As I stumbled upon this 2022 movie from writer Scott Teems and director Keith Thomas, I have to admit that my immediate thought was 'oh no, another unnecessary remake, just like the 2015 remake of "Poltergeist"'. Yet I opted to sit down and watch the movie, and actually give director Keith Thomas a fair chance with this 2022 version of "Firestarter". But as I just said above, "Firestarter" was a very unnecessary remake, and if you have seen the 1984 classic with Drew Barrymore, David Keith, Heather Locklear, Martin Sheen and George C. Scott, then you can easily skip on the 2022 version, believe you me. Sure, if you are unfamiliar with the 1984, then there is some entertainment value to the 2022 "Firestarter", no doubt about it. But for us that have seen the original, then this movie was just water under the bridge. The 2022 movie stars Zac Efron and Ryan Kiera Armstrong. I can't fathom why they opted for Efron for this movie, but Armstrong was actually nicely cast. The movie also have some good performances from veterans such as Kurtwood Smith, John Beasley, Gloria Reuben and Michael Greyeyes. Visually then "Firestarter" was nice, of course it was, given it is special effects and CGI made in 2022. But that doesn't alleviate the fact that "Firestarter" is a redundant movie. My rating of this watered-down remake lands on a bland five out of ten stars.