The Towering Inferno

Bought this the other week for NZ$6:99, figured it would be a good Friday night watch over a couple of beers with friends. I'd seen it when it came out, and remembered being impressed. However, at 12 the movie seemed a whole lot better than the over-long sub-plot-bloated soap opera with special effects we adults gave up on the other night. 'The Towering Inferno' rolled slowly and increasingly stupidly on until around three-quarters of the way through whereupon the irritating 'characters', shoddy special effects and ridiculous script ground us down. Just one example amongst many ridiculous howlers (see other reviews on this site for more); why do the firemen always their direct their hoses upward towards the ceiling when the actual flames (and therefore the fire itself) are plainly originating below? On every household extinguisher it says something like 'aim at the base of the flames', not 'well above the flames'. Oh look, don't get me started, suffice to say that it was pretty bad and an hour too long. And the theme song was pretty lame, too.

I like Paul Newman and all, but the all star cast of this picture brings no redemption to the 2 hours and 45 minutes of shame I endured as I struggled in epic fashion against one of the worst movies I've ever seen. Basicaly, the picture focuses on watching a totally 70's building burn. I expected an action packed disaster movie, but what I got was a slow paced disappointment. The extremely predictable extremely weak story gives no room for mega talent like Steve McQueen or Newman to do their thing. The special effects come to us from such a nul and void context that they basically stand on their own; during their day that might have been able to carry the picture, but coming in with todays blockbuster standards don't get your hopes up. If you want a good fire-fighter movie, watch Backdraft. I would only recomend this flick if you are ready to entertain yourself with witty comments and sarcasm and come to the picture with no expectation for drama.

Steve McQueen and Paul Newman are in a movie together, and it's not a racecar movie? Well, in the 1970s, it was a big fad to make big-budget disaster movies with a large cast. The Poseidon Adventure, Earthquake, and the Airport movies make up a classic niche genre, in which The Towering Inferno garners a top spot. This one deals with a burning building, a skyscraper to be exact. Hence, the "towering" inferno. Countless characters are introduced to the audience, given reasons to become attached, and then placed in dire peril. Who will make it out alive? This film's all-star cast includes Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, Fred Astaire, Richard Chamberlain, Jennifer Jones, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Susan Blakely, O. J. Simpson, Robert Vaughn, and Robert Wagner. Paul is the architect who built the titular building, but Bill is the builder who oversaw costs and decided to cut corners by cutting safety measures. Fred is an old conman who's out to swindle Jonsey, and Richard is Bill's scoundrel son-in-law married to Susan. All the cast is gathered together at the opening night party at the top floor when the trouble starts. At first, it's just a small electrical fire (thanks to Richard's shoddy work), but when it gets out of control, Paul insists they call the fire department and end the party. Bill doesn't want to send everyone home, because he knows if he did, it would result in a very short movie with no special effects. Most of this movie is excellent, so if somehow it's slipped past you, reserve a special movie night and rent it. Paul Newman gets to enjoy a break from his typical bad boy roles, and Steve McQueen looks very authoritative (and cute) in his firefighter uniform. Fred Astaire received his only Oscar nomination for this movie, and Jennifer Jones made her comeback and final film as one of the more memorable characters. Faye Dunaway has some tender moments with her boyfriend Paul, and she looks really beautiful in her bronze dress. The downsides are William Holden, who seems like he'd rather do anything than read his lines in front of the camera, and Richard Chamberlain - did his character have to be that much of a jerk? As one of the best pictures of 1974, don't let Bill's bad acting put you off.

I'll state right off the top that there is a lot to like about this movie. It's a lavish production - it comes across as a bit like what James Cameron might have put out in the 70's, although this is one of Irwin Allen's disaster movies. The "spare no expense" attitude to this film comes across in the unbelievably meticulous and believable sets, the excellent special effects revolving, of course, around the fire, and the assembling of a pretty high profile cast. The story of a huge fire breaking out in a massive high rise (I'm not exactly sure if it was mentioned how high this high rise was but it has to be at least 137 floors, since the people were on 135 and the water tanks were 2 floors above them) is well crafted - and this may be the only movie I've come across that's based on two (yes - 2) novels. It's suspenseful and the suspense is real. People begin dying pretty soon in and a few people die that you don't expect to die, so it's not especially predictable. It also offers a decent look at the methods firefighters might have used to battle such a blaze, and in fact the movie opened with a dedication to firefighters. And yet, for all that - something was not quite right. Also similar to some of James Cameron's later work, Irwin Allen seems to go a bit overboard with this. It's too much; it's too lavish. There's too much unnecessary filler. The story revolving around the attempts to defeat and escape the fire would have been quite sufficient, but in keeping with other 70's era disaster films Allen felt the need to insert melodrama into the script - certain "soapy" elements that really didn't do too much for the story. Those melodramatic additions add up, and lead to a movie that's needlessly almost 3 hours in length, when the basic story could have been told in much less. Irwin Allen could be well described as the "Master of Disaster" (with apologies to Apollo Creed!) A case could be made that "The Towering Inferno" is his best piece of work. It's not my favourite among the Allen movies I've seen, but this could be the best overall production he was ever responsible for, which is reflected in the fact that this was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. I think that's overdoing it a bit. I'd describe it as a good movie with more than a few shortcomings.

Irwin Allen's follow-up to "The Poseidon Adventure" (1972) is even better, with a remarkable cast of leading men and women in one film: Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, William Holden, Faye Dunaway, Fred Astaire, Jennifer Jones, Richard Chamberlain (who relishes his slimy role), Susan Blakely, Robert Wagner, Susan Flannery, more. Everything that could happen does in this model disaster spectacle: helicopters awry, cables loose, elevators uprooted, water tanks disrupted, flames spiraling, much more. San Francisco setting works well, special effects still resonate, a huge hit and multiple Academy nominations, including Best picture. As other reviewers noted, McQueen's final words are indeed haunting, 27 years before the World Trade Towers' disaster - perhaps architects will now re-consider not building these mammoth, phallic-shaped, fire deathtraps.

In the world of architectural structures, there are some buildings which have become synonymous with the state there were born in. Indeed, the structure which caught fire in this film was actually created from two stories. The original building was called 'The Tower' and it's sister structure was called " The Glass Inferno.' Together they were united summarily and christened as " The Towering Inferno. " Assembling a memorable cast caused this movie to be riveting and spellbinding. The inner tale for this combined feature is of a majestic and towering high rise which has just been inaugurated as it's first occupants are checking in and occupying their rooms. The architect, Doug Roberts (Paul Newman) has just returned from a short vacation and is impressed with his completed design. Immediately upon his return however, he discovers a small fire has broken out, due to faulty wiring. As the fire spreads, the Construction engineer, Jim Duncan (William Holden) is informed his chief electrical engineer has just been burned to death. As the fires continues to grow and evolve into a flaming, dangerous and ever rising inferno, the city's fire departments begin to arrive introducing Chief Michael O'Hallorhan (Steve McQueen). Several other stories thread and interlace the surface story involving Hollywood's elite, including Fred Astaire, Faye Dunaway, Richard Chamberlain, Robert Vaughn, and Robert Wagner. If you're seeing this movie for the first time, be prepared for many action scenes and exciting hair raising stunts. The story line is plausible (due to 911) as we acknowledge the firmly established courage and honored reputation of America's valiant Firemen, which is now fact and part of our history. Great movie which now wears the title of Classic. ****

Growing up, I was often subjected to Irwin Allen films because my father loved them. So, I was one of MANY people back in 1974 who saw this film in the theater. I didn't remember it all too well today (I was only 10 when I first saw it) but found it in a 4 pack of movies someone bought me....so I thought, what the heck...why not? However, I must tell you that most of the Irwin Allen films I've seen recently I didn't like...and I was expecting the same for "The Towering Inferno". Why do I say I am not a huge Irwin Allen film fan? Well, a few things he was known for I don't care for in movies....explosions and mayhem as well as many, many 'guest starring roles'...you know, when the film's budget seems to mostly be on getting as many big stars and has-beens to appear in it. This is why I am not a huge fan of "Airport" and its sequels as well as "Midway"...too many guests and not enough money spent on writing. "The Towering Inferno" has all of this...so it's definitely going to be a tough sell for me. The plot to the film is pretty simple. The world's tallest building is being dedicated but what the chief architect (Paul Newman) does not realize is that the boss' pusillanimous son-in-law (Richard Chamberlain) is a weasel but substituted the wiring in the specs with much cheaper wiring that makes the place a giant tinderbox. Only after a big gala party begins on the rooftop do they realize that the place is ablaze and a lotta folks are gonna die. For what it was, this film actually surprised me. Sure, there are some of the usual one-dimensional Irwin Allen characters but a few were pretty interesting and the film seemed to make the most out of the disaster genre. I especially appreciate its take on human nature, as many of the folks are simply selfish idiots! My only complaint is that MOST of the women in the film are simply there to scream and cry! Now I am NOT saying it's a great film...but if you have to watch a disaster flick, this is much better than most.

The Towering Inferno boasts a nice production design, some good visual effects and an all star cast. What's lacking in the film are characters that you care about. Steve McQueen is probably the best character in the film. His no nonsense fire chief knows his job, and McQueen does it well. Paul Newman is the architecht of the building and he spends most of the film crawling around and getting scorched. The running time of the film is a bit too long. What should've been done is a stronger character development and less time on the actual disaster element. That way, when the fire does break out, then we will care about the characters. We will have an interest in who lives and who dies. But, since this film was made over 26 years ago, I don't think there will be any recutting of it any time soon to bring about stronger characters.

To cut costs, an unscrupulous contractor orders cheap, substandard wiring in the construction of a high-rise. At the building's well-lit gala opening, the building's electrical system overloads, causing a "small fire". Unnoticed, and then later not taken seriously, the fire erupts into an epic story, in Irwin Allen's "The Towering Inferno". This 1974 film is technically well made. It has good cinematography, special effects, production design, and acting. But, typical of 70's disaster movies, the film suffers from routine characters and a predictable plot. Some of the romantic sub-plots are right out of "The Love Boat". Adapted from a couple of novels, "The Towering Inferno" is fictional. That fact, plus the distraction of having a cast of way too many big-name Hollywood "stars", makes it too easy for viewers to dismiss the film's serious theme. Superficially, the director addresses the tragic consequences, when the greed creed usurps public safety, but I would have preferred that this theme be more --- blunt. In real life, just three years after this film was made, 165 people were killed near Cincinnati, Ohio, in a fire that destroyed the elegant Beverly Hills Supper Club. The cause of that fire was --- substandard wiring. As recently as 2003, one hundred people were killed in a preventable fire at a nightclub in Rhode Island. And in 1903, over 600 people were killed in a fire at the plush Iroquois Theater in Chicago. Like the building in "The Towering Inferno", the Iroquois had just opened for business. Owners were fully aware of the lack of safety measures, but wanted to maximize profits from the busy Christmas movie season, and thus opened the theater prematurely. Many of the fire victims were children. As a medium to convey ideas and foster discussion, film can educate as well as entertain. Who else but Michael Moore could arouse a comatose American public about the perils of yet another threatening social issue.

My Take: The disaster movies done the old-fashioned way. Big thrills, big drama, big stars and everything else. The 70's marked the age of the disaster movies, evolving from the adaptation of Arthur Hailey's "Airport", then boost up by Irwin Allen's "The Poseidon Adventure", which was a hit. Allen continued the legacy of his work by doing another disaster film. It was "The Towering Inferno". "The Towering Inferno" is heavily considered as the best of the long cycle of 70's disaster movies. It was well-made, well-acted, and well-sold on the box-office. The problem, though, was it was too long. The first parts revolved on the celebration of the grand opening of the tallest office building on earth (at the movies, of course), the Glass Tower. But when it gets to the disaster, you see how great this film is. Impressive special-effects and great acting by an all-star cast help make this film the classic it is. Recommended for any fan of the genre. They don't make 'em like this anymore, and for that value alone, THE TOWERING INFERNO is a bona-fide classic all-star extravaganza. Rating: ***** out of 5.