Cast: Denzel Washington, Dakota Fanning, Marc Anthony, Radha Mitchell, Christopher Walke), Giancarlo Giannini, Rachel Ticotin, Jesús Ochoa, Mickey Roarke
Director: Tony Scott
Producers: Arnon Milchan, Tony Scott, Lucas Foster
Screenplay: Brian Helgeland, based on the novel by A.J. Quinnell
Cinematography: Paul Cameron
Music: Harry Gregson-Williams
U.S. Distributor: 20th Century Fox
It's open season for vigilantes. With Kill Bill Volume 2, The Punisher, and Walking Tall already out there, Man on Fire is entering a crowded marketplace. (My assumption is that these movies are intended to counterbalance the extraordinary number of current movies targeted at teen and tween girls.) When you line up Uma Thurman, Thomas Jane, The Rock, and Denzel Washington, Washington comes out the clear winner when it comes to both box office appeal and acting chops. So it's no surprise that Man on Fire represents the best of this crop of revenge movies (although Kill Bill has its strong points).
The key to Man on Fire's success is unquestionable: it doesn't rush things. The slow buildup allows ample opportunity for character development and relationship building, so, when the tragedy and Death Wish-style retribution occur, there's a sense of urgency and meaning. Also, director Tony Scott maintains an elegiac tone. Instead of pumping up the level of testosterone, he keeps everything except his camerawork low-key, lending a mournful, not triumphant, air to the proceedings. The grim second half of Man on Fire is about retribution and karma, not voyeuristic satisfaction. Few will leave the theater whooping and hollering.
Denzel Washington plays Creasy, an ex-Special Forces operative who is at loose ends. Having trouble coping with his memories and oblivious to any kind of meaningful future, he drifts south of the border to Mexico, where he encounters his old pal Rayburn (Christopher Walken), who hooks him up with a job as a bodyguard. Creasy's charge is simple: protect Pita (Dakota Fanning), the young daughter of a Mexican businessman, Samuel (Marc Anthony), and his American wife, Lisa (Radha Mitchell). Kidnappings are frequent happenings in Mexico, and Pita is a ripe target. Initially, Creasy resists Pita's attempts to make friends, but her charm eventually wins him over, and he takes on a father-figure role. Then, one fateful day, the kidnapping attempt occurs. Creasy takes several bullets and is unable to save Pita. And, while he languishes in a hospital, the transfer of ransom money is botched. When Creasy emerges from the hospital, he has only one goal in mind: kill anyone who was involved in the kidnapping.
With each successive feature, Tony Scott's MTV-inspired style, which includes jump-cuts, whip-pans, and all sorts of other herky-jerky camera tricks, grows more extreme. There's no obvious reason for this visual posturing except that it has become second-nature for Scott to approach things this way. It is more annoying than effective, and there were several instances when I found myself being pulled out of the story.
Scott's stylistic flair may be questionable, but there's nothing wrong with his storytelling. The bond that develops between Creasy and Pita is critical to the story, and Scott never forces things. It evolves naturally as a result of their interaction. The performances, especially those of Washington and Fanning, are superlative. Washington plays an individual who runs the emotional gamut - from closed-off outsider to loving father-figure to vengeful killer. Meanwhile, Fanning avoids the obvious "too cute" trap into which many actresses of her age fall. She is sweet and likable, but never saccharine, and she shows more ability and range than in any of her previous outings (which include I Am Sam, The Cat in the Hat, and Uptown Girls). And it's nice to see Christopher Walken given an opportunity to act rather than rant.
Man on Fire is a remake of a 1987 film starring Scott Glenn. Not having seen the earlier film or read A.J. Quinnell source novel, I can't compare this version to the other incarnations, but, standing on its own, this is a solid motion picture and a better-than-average example of a revenge flick. By concentrating on the emotional impact rather than the pyrotechnics, ammunition, and action/thriller elements, this comes across as an effective piece of drama, and it doesn't cheat us with a Hollywood cop-out ending. For what Man on Fire delivers, it's worth enduring Scott's hyperkinetic visual techniques.
© 2004 James Berardinelli