"Man on Fire" (2004) Directed by Tony Scott

“There is one kidnapping every 60 minutes in Latin America. 70% of the victims do not survive”.

One of my personal all time favourite Tony Scott films, one which I was enchanted with immediately I watched for the first time and a film that continues to enchant me on regular re-watches even now. Not because of the fact it follows a Tony Scott guideline of stylised, gritty realism, or the fast paced and often manic editing as yet another long (146 minutes) Tony Scott film flies by in a whirl of great cinematic story telling. Nor is it because of the wonderfully diverse characters on display or the sublime cinematography from Paul Cameron. All of these plus points and many more are present in this fantastic film, however it’s the human story so very well told that enchant and engage me time after time. Although based on a novel of the same name by A J Quinnell, it’s the frightening reality portrayed, based on very real day to day fact that engages me, and two central performances that always touch my heart and grip my imagination:

“Creasy” (Denzel Washington) In his second Tony Scott film, Washington is stunning as an ex CIA/Special Forces operative with a checkered history. Recruited as a bodyguard yet struggling to come to terms with day to day life and who drinks heavily to dull the pain. Socially awkward & reticent to make friends, both his character flaws and positive aspects run deep, with Washington bringing this multi levelled character to life absolutely brilliantly. One of the prized character actors of our generation he treads the fine line between professionalism and reckless abandon throughout the film, excellently displaying every side to his deep, dark character.

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The above paragraphs are taken from my original spoiler free review of "Man on Fire" penned and published over a decade ago, transferred to my Medium blog site on 9th January 2023 and which can be read in full and for free via my Substack blog site and original article linked immediately below:

https://ramblingmusings666.substack.com/p/man-on-fire-2004-40208ab5c571

This spoiler free review is also integral to volume 3 of my 7 volume series of "essential film reviews collection". Currently only available in e-book form, each substantial volume of numerous film reviews are priced at £4.99 per volume, however should you have an Amazon Kindle "Unlimited" package you can read each and every volume for free:

Volume 3

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C4JTLRY1

All 7 Volumes

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C4HZSTTH?binding=kindle_edition&ref=dbs_dp_rwt_sb_pc_tukn

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