 Movie
Reviews
with Evelyn Gough
Man on Fire (MA)
Directed by Tony Scott
 A tearful Dakota Fanning runs to the aid of her fallen bodyguard Denzel Washington.
Of course Man of Fire isn't a comedy but nevertheless it had me cracking up. Why? Because at the end of the movie the filmmakers had the audacity to thank Mexico City, describing it as "a very special place". Err... a bit late guys. After watching Tony Scott's brutal depiction of life in the kidnapping capital of the world no-one in their right mind would want to visit the place, let alone live there!
According to the prologue, in Latin America there's a kidnapping every hour and 70% of those taken do not survive. Denzel Washington plays John Creasy, a burned-out ex-CIA assassin who has lost his passion for life as well as his passion for killing. Now he seeks solace in bourbon and the Bible. His old buddy and former colleague Rayburn (a subdued Christopher Walken) suggests he moves to Mexico to take up a position as bodyguard to the cutie pie nine-year-old daughter (Dakota Fanning) of Mexican industrialist, Samuel Ramos (Marc "Mr J-Lo" Anthony) and his American wife Lisa (Aussie Radha Mitchell). He agrees, provided he isn't expected to be a friend to the child as well. Fat chance! Nobody could resist the little charmer and Creasy is no exception.
Through Pita (Fanning) he discovers a reason for living again, and yes I know it sounds horribly sentimental and schmaltzy, but somehow these two extremely talented actors manage to pull it off. Of course the inevitable happens and Pita is snatched. Creasy is left for dead, bleeding from multiple bullet wounds. When he recovers, his passion for killing has returned with a vengence. He's a man on fire. "His art is death and he's about to paint his masterpiece." And how!
To state the obvious, this is not a suitable movie for children. At the session I attended there was a young child who'll probably never watch another Speedy Gonzalez cartoon without needing counselling. This is an extremely violent movie. Not only is it emotionally harrowing, but there are graphic torture scenes.
Man on Fire certainly won't be everyone's cup of tea and I wasn't expecting much, but I have to admit I was quickly hooked.
This movie is two-and-a-half hours long and I wasn't bored once. It sure isn't subtle, the second half is basically Creasy on a killing spree and Tony Scott's direction and the film's choppy editing may be too "out there" or "arty-farty" for some but if you're in the mood for a great ass-kicker of a flick then this movie is for you.
A lot of its success is due to its two stars. Denzel Washington proves once again why he's an Oscar winner and I'm sure one day in the future Dakota Fanning will be walking up to that podium to accept her own Oscar - and she may even thank Mexico.
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