FIRESTARTER (1984)

FIRESTARTER (1984)

Tagline: If you get on her bad side...YOU'RE TOAST.

(Action, Sci-Fi, Lighting Stuff On Fire) [R]

You do unless I woke up in Russia this morning!

In this one, the government has a secret wing called “The Shop” where they try out new drugs on volunteers desperate for money. While in one of these experiments Andrew and Vickey McGee end up meeting, get together, and after the experiments end up having a daughter named Charlie.  Charlie has pyro-kinesis (the ability to light things on fire with her mind) and we find out she and her parents have been on the run from the operatives at “The Shop” for years. Different entities at “The Shop” want to do different things with Charlie and they will do anything to study her even kill her. 

First off, if you are wondering what the show STRANGER THINGS was originally based on, it was partly this movie. This was one of probably 100 movies that came out in the ’80s that were pretty damn clear about one undeniable fact. YOU CAN’T TRUST THE FREAKIN GOVERNMENT AT ALL…EVER!!! Especially when it comes to things they want to put in your body. They will be whatever they need to be to trick you into thinking your parents are nuts and everything is going to be alright if you just comply. 

I think because this movie is from the mind of Stephen King it automatically comes with a “horror” tag, but ultimately it’s not really a horror flick (unless you consider any X-MEN movie where pyro shows up a “horror” flick). It is however horrifying if after this movie you then start to read about all the crazy crap that the government has done to people with and without their consent.

Performance-wise, and in no way is this meant as an insult, but Drew Barrymore who plays Charlie was better as a child actress than she is now. I mean, she crushes it in this movie pulling out all the emotional stops I am sure the casting director could have hoped for. We also get a very solid effort out of David Keith who plays Andrew McGee. David Keith is probably best known these days for being Jack Murdock (the DAREDEVIL’S father) in DAREDEVIL. This movie also features Heather Locklear’s movie debut as Vickey McGee. She is good in this, but her on-screen time is maybe 5 minutes tops. The movie also featured veteran actors Martin Sheen and the super-diverse George C. Scott. Scott apparently got an eye infection from a contact he was wearing early in the movie and had to shoot the rest of the film with an eye patch on. 

Cinematically this movie is pretty much magic. Every “fire” scene involved practical effects and that made this movie extremely difficult to shoot. The music lends some perfectly timed tension to the more dramatic scenes. The movie was shot in North Carolina which served as an almost perfect backdrop for this movie. 

Overall this film does have its slow moments. The entire middle feels very stiff and sandwiched between a fantastic opening and an even more incredible ending. One of my critiques of Stephen King is that he has always been decent with “ideas” but can’t really write good endings for just about any of his books. This one is an exception at least regarding the movie. I don’t think this thing gets enough credit and in these times especially, it’s more relevant than it’s ever been. 

I have to give this thing a 6 out of 7. It’s not a perfect film and maybe could have shaved off 15 minutes, but it’s outstanding in the final analysis and is one of several Stephen King story-based films I recommend. 

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