CERT: 15 / PLATFORMS: CINEMA; PEACOCK / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Stephen King’s influence on horror is undeniable, and you could dedicate a whole book to the adaptations in TV and film of his work. Quality wise, these adaptations occupy a very varied spectrum, for every Carrie, Misery and IT, you get a few more like Dreamcatcher or Cell. Sadly, Keith Thomas’ (The Vigil) new take on King’s 1980 novel ‘Firestarter’ and its previous 1984 film adaptation, feels burnt out.
Young Charlie (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) has the ability to conjure fire but her control of this power is slipping, and when sinister secret forces come calling, desperate to have this power, Charlie’s loving telepathic father Andrew (Zac Efron) and telekinetic mother Victoria (Sydney Lemmon) must use their own powers to save their daughter. But does she need saving?
Firestarter may not be the worst Stephen King inspired film but nor is it anywhere remotely close to the best, in what is ultimately a disappointing and unmemorable re-adaptation/remake that runs out of steam. Not to mention one that feels a bit out of place on the big screen in 2022.
Starting off initially well, with violent VHS-like opening credits creating an anarchic starting tone, as well as a game cast (Efron and Armstrong especially deserve a far better horror to work with), things start getting irreparably messy some point after the film pointlessly and graphically fries a cat onscreen. The elements are here but the story never taps into any real depth and the action never turns up the heat, as the script’s logical issues begin to pile up to the point they can no longer be ignored and the terrible ending only leaves a further dissatisfying taste.
There’s a good film here but this new take on King’s pyrokinetic horror thriller is sadly unable to let it out, resulting in a film that is a rather snuffed out affair. However, its one saving grace really is the superb soundtrack by John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies. These guys are really scoring a far more chilling, emotive and powerful film than this one, and their music is every bit as excellent as the collective’s recent work on the infinitely superior recent legacy Halloween films.
Remember the soundtrack, forget the film.
