The Towering Inferno

1974 "One tiny spark becomes a night of blazing suspense."
7| 2h45m| PG| en| More Info
Released: 14 December 1974 Released
Producted By: 20th Century Fox
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

At the opening party of a colossal—but poorly constructed—skyscraper, a massive fire breaks out, threatening to destroy the tower and everyone in it.

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Reviews

Vashirdfel Simply A Masterpiece
Ella-May O'Brien Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.
Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.
Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable
MartinHafer 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.
BA_Harrison A few hundred guests gather at the top of San Fransisco's newest skyscraper, a 135-storey tower of steel and glass, for its inaugural celebrations. Unfortunately, slimy contractor Simmons (Richard Chamberlain) has cut corners on the construction, ignoring the high specifications stipulated by architect Doug Roberts (Paul Newman). As a result, an electrical fire breaks out, the flames rapidly spreading throughout the building, trapping the party-goers. Fire Chief O'Hallorhan (Steve McQueen) is called in to deal with the emergency, but can he find a way to save the revellers before the blaze reaches them?Along with The Poseidon Adventure, The Towering Inferno marks the absolute pinnacle of the '70s disaster movie, with a spectacular all-star cast, amazing special effects, and all the emotional drama one expects from the genre. Programmed by the BBC during the Christmas period when I was a child (1980, I think), this film has long been a firm favourite of mine, and still has the power to impress even after all of these years. The performances are great (with an Oscar nom for Fred Astaire as an ageing conman), the cinematography is excellent, and the pyrotechnics and model effects are breath-taking. Exploding the building's water tanks at the end of the film to extinguish the fire might be stretching plausibility a touch, but there is no denying this film's ability to entertain.
K F After watching this movie I have come to the conclusion that people in the 70ies were retarded and stared at each other awful lot. It sort of makes sense now too why they were all dressed in Ronald Weasley's dress robes...Apart from the endless staring at each other they also made sure there were lengthy pauses after each corny and unnatural sounding sentence they uttered. Even in the middle of a life-threatening emergency. They were either all terribly zen or...retarded. Yeah. I think this is one of the most annoying movies I have ever seen. About 65% of it, at least, could and should have been cut easily. I hope they remake it with normal people.
mark.waltz Following the smashing success of "The Poseidon Adventure", veteran producer Irwin Allen jumped back on the band wagon of producing tense, star-filled dramas of humanity in jeopardy for one reason or another. Following the big boat came this big skyscraper, and of course, this lead to his big disaster with an exploding volcano. Other copy-cat producers created movies about exploding blimps (three of them including a historical look back at "The Hindenberg" and two involving blimps hovering over crowded sporting events), rollercoasters flying off of their hinges, and of course, airplanes falling from the sky. All of them featured the most popular leading stars of the day and some surprising veterans making amusing comebacks."The Towering Inferno" is a scary thought in a world still remembering the impact of 9/11, and when this movie first came out, the World Trade Centers had only been open for a short time. Like "The Poseidon Adventure", an all-star cast gets together to celebrate a huge event, only to find their lives in jeopardy when disaster strikes. What it lacks in comparison to "The Poseidon Adventure" was that film's big heart, even though one of the plot lines attempted to keep that detail here. But this is a film about corporate greed and ego, and it is building owner William Holden's desire to own the world's tallest building, so perhaps it was intended for more of a message picture than one of holiday sentiment surrounded by tragedy.1950's rival tough guys (Paul Newman and Steve McQueen) fight over who will be the hero here, with Newman as Holden's partner and McQueen as fire chief. Newman is engaged to magazine editor Faye Dunaway which doesn't mean much because the storyline surrounding their relationship is never really developed and Dunaway, very busy in films in 1974, really has little to do. The most interesting storyline surrounds conman Fred Astaire (in an Oscar Nominated role) and his younger lady love (veteran actress Jennifer Jones) and their attempts to get out of the burning building. Susan Flannery, then at the top of her popularity on daytime's "Days of Our Lives", got a great deal of attention as one of the fire's victims.The set-up to the cause of the fire and how it spreads takes up much of the film's three hour running time, and moves into the attempts to rescue those trapped inside. Special effects are amazing, and overall, the film is extremely entertaining. However, an attempt to create another hit song like "The Morning After" (from "The Poseidon Adventure") is missed with "We May Never Love Like This Again" which did go on to win an Oscar but is certainly not as well remembered as Maureen McGovern's previous hit. She actually gets to appear on screen here, singing a bit of the song, unlike in "Poseidon".Fans of Astaire will be surprised to learn that this was his only trip to the Oscars as a nominee, never having been nominated for any of his classic musical films. He basically plays a non-singing, barely dancing version of all his other characters, the charming, dashing older man who just happens to be an ex-con. Jones is still gorgeous thirty years after receiving her Oscar. Other stars try to make an impression in the film, but sadly, Richard Chamberlain, Robert Wagner, Robert Vaughan and then football hero O.J. Simpson end up sidetracked when compared to the impact of the other stars. While this is far from being a miss, it is certainly not worthy of the hype it had at the time, especially its inclusion as an Oscar Nominee for Best Picture.