ReelBob: ‘Firestarter’ ★
By Bob Bloom
The new version of “Firestarter” is tepid, a bare-bones retelling of the Stephen King novel that while it has some merits, simply leaves you cold.
The movie, told in a compact 94 minutes, dispenses with all the scientific testing of young Charlie that bogged down the 1984 movie.
By contrast, the 1984 version, which starred Drew Barrymore as Charlie, ran 114 minutes. And it featured one of those cliched omnipresent government agencies — The Shop — that wanted to capture Charlie and harness her power for its own purposes.
The bad government agency in the new “Firestarter” is called the DSI. Replacing Martin Sheen’s hammy Captain Hollister from the original is Gloria Reuben as Hollister. She is smoother, but just as devious.
This 21st century “Firestarter,” written by Scott Teems and directed by Keith Thomas, shifts the focus of the movie. The first half mostly is spent on the home life of Andy, his wife, Vicky (Sydney Lemmon) and Charlie, their attempts to appear as a normal family and their staying off the grid.
But their plans begin to unravel when Charlie’s bullying at school ignites a series of incidents that draws attention to the family.
The most significant difference between this version of “Firestarter,” the book and the first movie is the relationship between Charlie and John Rainbird, a Shop assassin assigned to capture Charlie.
Rainbird (Michael Greyeyes) sneaks into the family’s home while Andy and Charlie are out. He kills Vicky, but Andy and Charlie, using their powers, escape.
“Firestarter” feels rushed and incomplete, as if too much is omitted and left unexplained. The film is feeble, failing to spark any passion or emotional connection with any of the characters.
You have no emotional investment in either Zac Efron as Andy or Ryan Kiera Armstrong as Charlie. They work hard to create some connection but are continually undermined by the weak script.
“Firestarter” is rudimentary with no sense of time nor place. The movie’s pace is quicker than the first film, but it still disappoints because it tone is erratic, veering between horror film and evil secret-government agency cliches that fail to mesh.
This “Firestarter” will definitely douse your expectations.
I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. I review movies, 4K UHD, Blu-rays and DVDs for ReelBob (ReelBob.com), The Film Yap and other print and online publications. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com. You also can follow me on Twitter @ReelBobBloom and on Facebook at ReelBob.com or the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My movie reviews also can be found at Rotten Tomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.
FIRESTARTER
1 star out of 4
(R), graphic violence, language