Firestarter movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Firestarter

This horror remake is now playing in theaters nationwide.

RATING: R

LENGTH: 1 hour 34 minutes

IN A NUTSHELL:

A young girl tries to understand how she mysteriously gained the power to set things on fire with her mind. This Stephen King adaptation was originally made in 1984 but, sadly, doesn’t add much to the retelling. This horror flick is brought to us by Universal Pictures and Blumhouse Productions.

THINGS I LIKED:

I liked the change to the backstory, although I know some people thought it was hokey.
John Carpenter did the music for this film. He was going to do the soundtrack for the 1984 movie but was replaced. Sadly, some are saying that the musical score is the best part of the movie.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

There are some surprisingly shallow reactions and acting moments by various cast members when, instead, they should have be intense.
There are a lot of flashbacks and exposition.
Some viewers have complained that the source material has been changed too much.
So much screaming.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Bullying
Bloody, gory burns and deaths
Profanity, including several F-bombs
High dead-body count

THEMES:

Focused meditation
Overcoming temptation
Shoving down your feelings
Parenting
Special abilities
Mind over matter
Control
Anger

FUNNY LINES:

“You telling me I can’t trust the TV?” – Irv (John Beasley) “Shocker, I know.” – Andy McGee (Zac Efron)
“Liar, liar, pants on fire.” – Charlie McGee (Ryan Kiera Armstrong)

INTERESTING LINES:

“There are none so blind as those who will not see.” – Dr. Joseph Wanless (Kurtwood Smith)
“When you hurt people, you don’t just hurt them, it hurts everyone around them.” – Andy McGee (Zac Efron)
“Promise that you’ll never use your gifts to hurt people.” – Andy McGee (Zac Efron)