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Top Critics (39)
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Suffice it to say nothing about this pumped-up, hyperthyroidal Tony Scott revenge flick makes sense, but it takes two hours to kill off as many people and demolish as many vehicles as Charles Bronson used to do in 30 minutes.
Intentional or not, Man on Fire's over-the-top evocation of Christian retribution goes a long way to making this otherwise standard revenge fantasy watchable.
I'm recommending Man on Fire for that bold style, its unapologetic comic book story arc, and the great performances from Denzel Washington, Christopher Walken and young Dakota Fanning.
This movie isn't just about a kidnapping; it is a kidnapping, and we're the hostages.
Despite a red-hot performance by Washington as the antiheroic, self-annihilating title character, the film as a whole, while possessing a kind of vicious beauty, feels as cold and as embalmed as a corpse.
A predictable, gruesome piece of business that tries to ennoble one-man vigilante justice with the star power of Denzel Washington.
Extremely violent; not for kids.
"Man On Fire" is remake of a notoriously dreadful 1987 movie, based on the same-titled novel by A.J. Quinnell, and it fares little better here with Tony Scott ("Spy Game") directing with a flamboyant use of flashy subtitles and camera techniques lifted f
A down-and-dirty revenge tale that packs an emotional punch.
It may be nothing more than a sort of exotically set 21st century Death Wish in much fancier duds, but Man on Fire sure gives good revenge.
...Washington and Fanning, specifically, are so unaffected, so sincere, you actually forget the nonsensical plot they're involved in. (Collector's Edition two-disc set)
Scott doesn't trust his audience to get in tune with the story's emotional tug-of-war, which is why he is so incessant on keeping your eyeballs busy.
Visually the film is nice, but the images are in service to a violent and ugly film.
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