Ahoy, squirts! Quint here from beautiful Wellington... well, it's pitch black outside right now, but you know what I mean. I'm pulling for LADDER 49, but I really can't get a solid lock on what the film will be. The reviews range from "pretty good" to "meh," like the below. The trailer has some pretty fire stuff, but that really doesn't tell me much about how the film will play. What do you folks think?
LADDER 49 CAN’T HOLD A CANDLE TO BACKDRAFT
Long time reader, second time contributor (if you use this, that is).
I recently attended a screening of LADDER 49, which was exclusively for firemen (and friends and family thereof), and my thoughts on the film can best be summed up in one word:
Meh.
First off, the film is an unabashed love letter to the fire fighting profession. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it made the film at times seem more like a recruiting tool than an actual film. We follow Phoenix’s character from his very first days as a rookie, and through the months and years that follow. Along the way, he learns what it takes to become a firefighter, and even finds time to get married (to the luscious Jacinda Barrett) and have kids. Gradually, he begins to question whether or not the dangers of the job are worth it, especially after one of his colleagues falls through a burning roof and dies, and another gets his face melted away by steam after a pipe explodes.
The Good: Joaquin Phoenix’s performance was solid, and you do care whether or not his character survives the film. Another surprise is Jacinda Barrett (who was a cast member of MTV’s The Real World about ten years ago). She turns in an effective performance, though her Australian accent tends to mysteriously appear and disappear throughout the course of the film. Robert Patrick is also great in this film, and with that moustache I kept thinking he’d be a dead ringer for the Watchmen’s Comedian (paying attention, Mr. Aaronofsky?).
The Bad: The pacing is slower than molasses in the wind, and the few action set pieces are shot in such a way that you don’t really feel the danger of the situation in which the fire fighters find themselves. It reminded me of the old TV series EMERGENCY, where the thrilling rescue scenes weren’t very thrilling. Another misstep this film makes is that it starts at the end (so to speak), with Phoenix’s character being trapped in the rubble of a burning building. This makes most of the narrative happen in flashback, and it casts a pall over the proceedings because you know straight away what will ultimately happen to the character. John Travolta’s slump continues, as he delivers an absolutely lackluster performance as the captain.
The Bottom Line: Though the film is certainly not without its merits, there’s just not enough here to warrant seeing it. It can’t hold a candle (pun fully intended) to the far superior Backdraft.
If you use this, I am Rhavokk.
And if you don’t, I am still Rhavokk.
