Recently, I decided to take a look at 'Man on Fire' (1987), which is apparently the inspiration for the film of the same title with Denzel Washington. The selling points to see it include the fact that it's from the 80s, it's a thriller, and Scott Glenn is in the lead.
What I found fascinating about this film is that it takes place by lake Como in Italy and that it's supposed to feel "European." On the other hand, I found the script to be incredibly underdeveloped with underused actors. You nearly have an all-star cast with names such as Brooke Adams, Joe Pesci, Danny Aiello, Jonathan Pryce and Paul Shenar, yet it's if they're not in the film at all. I can't believe all of those actors were cast, just for the film to revolve around Glenn and the girl who gets kidnapped.
The kidnapping doesn't even take place until it's halfway over, so it feels clumsy. I get it, Glenn forms a fatherly fondness for the girl and we're supposed to see how that develops, but all in all it's just underwhelming. There's also no twist and very little suspense, so I'm not certain what the director wanted to accomplish.
All in all, the movie is simply okay and very straightforward, so if you're looking for something quite special, you may want to skip this one.
What I found fascinating about this film is that it takes place by lake Como in Italy and that it's supposed to feel "European." On the other hand, I found the script to be incredibly underdeveloped with underused actors. You nearly have an all-star cast with names such as Brooke Adams, Joe Pesci, Danny Aiello, Jonathan Pryce and Paul Shenar, yet it's if they're not in the film at all. I can't believe all of those actors were cast, just for the film to revolve around Glenn and the girl who gets kidnapped.
The kidnapping doesn't even take place until it's halfway over, so it feels clumsy. I get it, Glenn forms a fatherly fondness for the girl and we're supposed to see how that develops, but all in all it's just underwhelming. There's also no twist and very little suspense, so I'm not certain what the director wanted to accomplish.
All in all, the movie is simply okay and very straightforward, so if you're looking for something quite special, you may want to skip this one.