Man on Fire (2004)

Director:

Tony Scott

Writers (WGA):

A.J. Quinnell (novel)
Brian Helgeland (screenplay)

Release Date:

23 April 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Revenge is a meal best served cold

Plot:

In Mexico City, a former assassin swears vengeance on those who committed an unspeakable act against the family he was hired to protect.

Plot Keywords:

Bodyguard | Mexico | Kidnapping | CIA | Alcoholic

Awards:

1 win & 6 nominations

Cast

Denzel Washington	...	Creasy
Dakota Fanning	...	Pita
Marc Anthony	...	Samuel
Radha Mitchell	...	Lisa
Christopher Walken	...	Rayburn
Giancarlo Giannini	...	Manzano
Rachel Ticotin	...	Mariana
Jesús Ochoa	...	Fuentes
Mickey Rourke	...	Jordan
Angelina Peláez	...	Sister Anna
Gustavo Sánchez Parra	...	Daniel Sanchez
Gero Camilo	...	Aurelio Sanchez
Rosa María Hernández	...	Maria
Heriberto Del Castillo	...	Bruno
Mario Zaragoza	...	Jorge Ramirez

MPAA:

Rated R for language and strong violence.

Runtime:

146 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Taiwan:R-18 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Zurich) | Germany:16 | Malaysia:18PL | USA:R (certificate #40714) | Iceland:16 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | Canada:18A (Alberta) | Mexico:B15 | Portugal:M/16 | France:-12 | Sweden:15 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Brazil:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Chile:14 | Czech Republic:12 | Finland:K-15 | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:18 | Italy:T | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:R-18 | Singapore:NC-16 | South Korea:15 | Spain:18 | UK:18

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Fox 2000 Pictures

Trivia:

The zebra in Pita's house belonged to the real owner of the house. It is a real stuffed zebra. There were also leopard skin rugs around the house.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Creasy chases Aurelio Sanchez into his house, the weather is clear, but just as he opens the door for the first time with the small boy, it's raining outside. In the roof scene a few moments later, it's clear again.

Quotes:

Rayburn: He'll deliver more justice in a weekend than ten years of your courts and tribunals.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Bounty Hunting on Acid: Tony Scott's Visual Style (2006) (V)

Soundtrack:

Deedrah Reload (GMS Remix)

3 Denzels and 1 Dakota For Your Money

Here's a gritty, get-the-bad guys revenge story starring a relentless and rough Denzel Washington. He's three personalities here: a down-and-out-low-key-now drunk- former mercenary, then a loving father-type person to a little girl and then a brutal maniac on the loose seeking answers and revenge.

The story is about Washington hired to be a bodyguard for a little American girl living in Mexico, where kidnappings of children occur regularly (at least according to the movie.) He becomes attached to the kid, played winningly by THE child actress of our day, Dakota Fanning. When Fanning is kidnapped in front of him, Washington goes after the men responsible and spares no one. Beware: this film is not for the squeamish.

This is stylish film-making, which is good and bad. I liked it, but a number of people found it too frenetic for their tastes as the camera-work is one that could give you a headache. I thought it fit the tense storyline and was fascinating to view, but it's (the shaky camera) not for all tastes.

Besides the two stars, there is the always-interesting Christopher Walken, in an uncharacteristically low-key role, and a number of other fine actors.

The film panders to the base emotions in all of us, but it works.