Review: The Towering Inferno (1974)

The Towering Inferno

Rating

Director

John Guillermin

Screenplay

Stirling Silliphant (Novel: Richard Martin Stern, Thomas N Scortia, Frank M. Robinson)

Length

2h 45m

Starring

Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, William Holden, Faye Dunaway, Fred Astaire, Susan Blakely, Richard Chamberlain, Jennifer Jones, O.J. Simpson, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner, Susan Flannery, Sheila Mathews, Normann Burton, Jack Collins

MPAA Rating

Review

Nearly as old as film itself, the disaster genre was a minor one until the 1970s when they became ubiquitous and at the top of that era’s output was a film that still has remarkable salience today: The Towering Inferno.

Doug Roberts (Paul Newman) is the architect of The Glass Tower, a 138-story mixed use skyscraper. It’s the builder’s (William Holden) crowning achievement and to celebrate, he is hosting a star-studded event on the building’s 135th floor. An electrical fire on 81 calls into question the shoddy workmanship of the builder’s son’s (Richard Chamberlain) engineering firm. As the stresses of the massive edifice begin to weaken its power grid, the once under-control fire begins to spread and endanger the lives of everyone in the building, including those who’ve chosen to live there.

Much like the grand opening celebration, Towering Inferno is a star-studded affair. Alongside Newman, Holden, and Chamberlain are Steve McQueen as San Francisco’s fire chief; Faye Dunaway as Newman’s fiancée; Fred Astaire (the film’s sole acting Oscar nominee) as a con man flirting with Jennifer Jones, a wealthy guest; Susan Blakely as Holden’s daughter; O.J. Simpson as the building’s head of security; Robert Vaughan as a senator with Robert Wagner as his public relations officer; and Susan Flannery as Wagner’s secretary.

Although the cast is large, their performances fall well within the realm of believability. That’s not always the case with such ensembles, typically there are weak links or people playing to the rafters. Here, everything is credible, including the disaster. Contractors cutting corners to bring down costs. Businesses focusing on politics and prestige over precaution. If this movie were made today, an update to the clothes and décor are all that would be needed to update it to a modern framework. It’s even been done in the 2012 Korean film The Tower, which was loosely based on this film.

Producer Irwin Allen made a name for himself on the backs of the successes of this film as well as 1972’s The Poseidon Adventure. Although his subsequent films were hardly remarkable, The Towering Inferno remains the pinnacle of his achievements. A compellingly written screenplay by Stirling Silliphant was tightly directed by John Guillermin. With the gorgeous designs, believable visual effects, and a cast of top notch actors, it would have been a surprise if the film hadn’t been as good as it is.

The Towering Inferno has its weaknesses, like Poseidon and Airport before it, but it was an exciting time for moviegoers who wanted thrills, drama, and life and death on a perilous scale.