The Towering Inferno [DVD]

Irwin Allen's grand-scale, star-studded 1974 disaster movie "The Towering Inferno" has been given first-class home-video treatment with the May 9, 2006, release of 20th Century Fox's feature-packed 2-Disc DVD Special Edition of the film.I can't imagine any fan of this movie being disappointed with anything associated with this classy-looking double-disc SE of "Inferno" -- except perhaps the lack of a 5.1 Surround track, which is not included here, although the inner keepcase box does say that a 5.1 track is employed for the movie. But this is a packaging error; the outer slipcase has the correct audio specs....i.e., an English Dolby Digital 4.0 Surround soundtrack, plus a 2.0 Dolby Surround track in English. And both of those tracks sound very good, IMO. The memorable music score by John Williams fills up every speaker quite nicely whenever it's called upon to do so.The absence of a 5.1 soundtrack on this Special Edition does seem a bit odd since the earlier non-SE Fox DVD edition of the film (which came out in March 1999) does have a 5.1 track on it. ~shrugs~In addition to the good sound reproduction that can be heard on this DVD, the video quality is outstanding as well. This disc provides a beautiful, virtually blemish-free Anamorphic Widescreen (2.35:1) version of "The Towering Inferno". Colors look bright and natural. I've never seen this movie look any better than it does here.Of all the many movies that fit inside the "Disaster Movie" genre, "The Towering Inferno" is one of my favorites -- along with two others from that "Decade Of Disaster Films" (the 1970s): "The Poseidon Adventure" and the original "Airport".Irwin Allen, of course, was the producer and creative force behind both 1972's "The Poseidon Adventure" and the equally-as-tasking project known as "The Towering Inferno" two years later. But both of those massive movie efforts paid off immensely for Mr. Allen and for thrill-seeking movie-house patrons, as each film did extremely well at the box office. "Inferno" took in more than $100-million at U.S. movie theaters alone following its debut in December of 1974."Inferno" also did pretty well when it came time to hand out the Oscar statues. The film received one of the highest honors in the movie industry when it was nominated for an Academy Award as one of the five top films of 1974 ("The Godfather Part 2" won the Oscar for Best Picture that year). The other three nominees were "Chinatown", "Lenny", and "The Conversation".Another major Oscar nomination for "Inferno" went to Fred Astaire, who was among the five "Best Supporting Actor" candidates in '74. (Robert DeNiro won the award.)"The Towering Inferno" ended up winning three Oscar trophies (for Best Cinematography, Best Song, and Best Film Editing), and was nominated for several others.So, while the film might tend to be scoffed at today by some film critics and movie fans, "TTI" was certainly a blockbuster at the turnstiles and a success with the Motion Picture Academy as well, providing ample reward and satisfaction (no doubt) for its creator and hard-working producer and unit director, Mr. Irwin Allen.As with most other films in the "disaster"/"doomsday" genre, "Inferno" has its fair share of plot contrivances and conveniently-arranged deaths. But this film, which clocks in at a lengthy 2 hours and 44 minutes, has a certain re-watchable quality that has never waned since I first saw it many years ago.I think part of the reason that "TTI" holds up better than other peril-filled movies is the realistic nature of its script in terms of actually fighting the fire that is blazing through the high-rise skyscraper; plus the very good group of actors in the cast. Steve McQueen's "Chief O'Hallorhan", for example, isn't portrayed as some kind of super-human fire-fighting machine who will be able to take on this blaze all by himself and single-handedly rescue everyone who needs to be rescued.O'Hallorhan, instead, comes across on screen as a realistic and down-to-earth Fire Chief who's just doing his job at the scene of a big fire in a big building. He's in complete control of his firemen, yes. But, in the end, he can only be "in control" up to a certain point. Because, as Producer Irwin Allen points out in one of the bonus featurettes within this DVD set, "fire waits for no man". Not even for Chief McQueen/O'Hallorhan.I also think that Paul Newman's TTI character (architect "Doug Roberts") could be described in similar terms. Roberts, like O'Hallorhan, is rooted more in realism, instead of sensationalism. Doug even finds himself taking orders from a very forceful O.J. Simpson at one point in the film. ("Come on man, call an ambulance!")"The Towering Inferno" is set in San Francisco, California, where that city's brand-new 138-story skyscraper -- "The Glass Tower" -- is just about to be formally dedicated. On the night of the dedication, a small electrical fire on the 81st floor goes undetected for a considerable time (the smoke detectors on Floor #81 aren't in working order). This small fire then begins to engulf more of the building....and before you know it, we have a "towering inferno" in our midst.The initial helicopter shot we get of the "Glass Tower" is an impressive image, as the film's creators have matted the lofty structure into the real San Francisco skyline. It looks pretty authentic too, especially considering the pre-CGI era in which this matting was done.If modern computer-generated imagery had been available at the time, I suppose TTI's opening skyline shot would have looked a little more seamless and picture-perfect, but for 1974 technology, I think the filmmakers did a great job with that shot, and with all of the other pieces of camerawork that would be done today by using computer imagery and other higher-tech special effects. When thinking about this film in that "prior-to-CGI" manner, it makes "The Towering Inferno" an even more impressive motion picture on an "effects" level.Bringing "The Towering Inferno" to the screen was an enormous year-long undertaking, with four separate film crews being utilized simultaneously and a massive number of expensive sets being constructed (and then completely destroyed per the film's flame-filled script). There were 57 individual sets built for the film, and only eight of them remained standing by the end of shooting.One of the things I've always liked about this film is the richness in detail with respect to the plush-looking sets used in the movie. The large, wide-open office areas exude a high-class and kind of futuristic feel to them. It's a shame they had to be burned to the ground. But the script demanded this destruction, of course.TTI's cast roster certainly doesn't suffer from a lack of major movie stars. The four actors who get "above-the-title" billing in "Inferno" are: 44-year-old Steve McQueen, Paul Newman (age 49), William Holden (who was 56 during filming), and a lovely 33-year-old Faye Dunaway.Toss into the above impressive group the likes of Richard Chamberlain, Fred Astaire, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner, Susan Blakely, Susan Flannery, O.J. Simpson, and Jennifer Jones -- and it makes for a decent-sized payroll for the two movie studios who were at the helm of this major production (20th Century Fox and Warner Brothers, who made film history when they got together and agreed to split the cost of producing "The Towering Inferno" -- a final cost which amounted to approximately 14-million dollars).In smaller roles, keep an eye peeled for some other familiar TV and movie faces -- like Ross Elliott, Dabney Coleman, Mike Lookinland, Olan Soule, Gregory Sierra, and John Crawford.-----------------------LOTS OF EXTRAS:A large amount of behind-the-scenes and technical information can be found within the vast number of documentaries and featurettes that occupy space on Disc #2 of this two-DVD edition of "The Towering Inferno". A lot of informative stuff can be located amongst the bonus material that Fox has seen fit to place on board this superb DVD set. (I doubt if Fox could have fit the proverbial "kitchen sink" into this set even if they had wanted to wedge it in. ~wink~)There are a total of 12 featurettes and documentary programs included on Disc Two, including a 22-minute "AMC Backstory" all about TTI.Nine newly-created mini-featurettes (with running times that range from 4 to 9 minutes in length) can be individually accessed from a separate Sub-Menu on the second disc. These 9 short programs have titles ranging from "Directing The Inferno", to "Irwin Allen: The Great Producer", to "Running On Fire", to "Still The World's Tallest Building". All of these pieces are displayed in Anamorphic Widescreen format (with an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1).My two favorite bonus items are the pair of original 1974 "Making Of" featurettes that have been included, which offer up a circa '74 look behind Irwin Allen's production. These two '74 bonuses are each titled "The Building Of A Blockbuster". The first one runs for 8 minutes; the second one lasts 7 minutes.Both of those vintage Making-Of films include plenty of behind-the-camera footage, plus some brief on-the-set interview snippets with some of the actors and crew members. Some really good and fun-to-watch stuff here to be sure.A funny quip in one of the featurettes is supplied by Steve McQueen, as he's being tied down in preparation for the movie's climactic "water tank" scene (which was filmed on Monday, August 12, 1974), when Steve looks over at the camera and says: "If anything happens to me, Ali {MacGraw} gets my pick-up truck".Other DVD Special Features:>> Multiple Audio Commentary Tracks for the feature film on Disc #1.>> 44 minutes of Extended & Deleted Scenes (over 30 total).>> A "NATO Presentation Reel" (11 minutes).>> A 1977 interview with Irwin Allen (12 minutes).>> Storyboard-To-Film Comparisons.>> Three Interactive (Text) Articles.>> Multiple Photo Galleries.>> Theatrical Trailers for "The Towering Inferno" and "The Poseidon Adventure".-----------------------COOL INSERTS & PACKAGING:20th Century Fox has also included some nicely-done paper inserts and other goodies inside this DVD package. In fact, there are so many items in here, they can barely all be squeezed into the box. An unusual "paper" dilemma indeed, especially considering the fact that most DVDs issued nowadays (even most "Special Editions") don't come with even so much as a one-page chapter-list leaflet.This TTI DVD contains the following physical enclosures:1.) A six-page fold-out pamphlet, which has photos, production notes, and a chapter list for the movie's 32 Scene Selections.2.) A collection of eight "Towering Inferno" Lobby Cards.3.) A 36-page booklet, which is packed with pictures and general information about the movie. This handsome booklet appears to be a re-print of an original TTI movie program that was issued back in 1974.A quote from the booklet: "Meet the creators...and the stars in a dramatic treasury of photographic highlights...and an excitingly informative behind-the-scenes look at The Towering Inferno".The shiny and glossy-looking outer cardboard packaging that has been designed for this two-DVD set is also worth a few words of praise. Fox has placed the DVDs themselves in a standard type of hard plastic keepcase. That case then slides into an outer slipcase (sleeve), which features raised lettering for the title and some eye-popping vintage TTI artwork. First-class collectible-style packaging for sure.The same type of deluxe packaging also comes with TTI's 2-Disc SE sister set, "The Poseidon Adventure". That companion set also comes highly recommended. It's a dandy DVD, with tons of bonus features, too.-----------------------A FINAL "TTI" WORD:"The Towering Inferno" towers over many other "disaster cycle" motion pictures, probably because of the vision and convictions of its creator/producer/co-director, Irwin Allen. But whatever the reasons may be, this film works (in my opinion anyway).And there can't possibly be any better way to experience all of that fire, water, and on-screen destruction than by watching this sparkling 2-Disc Special Edition DVD. This is a disaster (film) DVD product that 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment can truly be proud of.

Love these films ...

Excellent movie with excellent actors: Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Robert Wagner, Fred Astaire, Richard Chamberlain, and others. It’s not a suitable movie for youngsters: death, violence, sexual content.

Let me begin with how surprisingly impressed I am with this movie. As a child of the 70's, I grew up watching disaster movies on TV, The Poseidon Adventure, Earthquake, Airport and this little gem. As we all know, as time passes by and we reminisce on childhood experiences, we tend to fall into hyperbole a lot of the time. So it was with great dread that I sent for this copy of a movie I held so close to my 9 y/o heart. What would my 44 y/o cardiac muscle find in watching this? Will my CGIed eyes be hurt by blatant matt paintings and fake flames? Will I run in horror at the 70's fashion? Will seeing OJ Simpson save a cat make me choke on my popcorn?Well as I said before, I am impressed. The effects are actually quite good, and the clothes aren't half bad, and OJ... well I had to drink some Coke to get that popcorn down but that was a small price to pay.The story is one that has been handed down since The Poseidon Adventure to Titanic, those greedy corporate types in their infinite wisdom of cutting corners to save a few bucks, don't follow the rules and of course all Hell is going to break loose. In this instance the electrical wiring in the 100+ story building isn't up to snuff. But hey, let's give the best darn inauguration party we can! We all know what's going to happen, just read the title, so let's get to other stuff.Steve McQueen and Paul Newman, two of the coolest cats in town, are the fire chief and architect respectively. You can believe each in their role right off the bat, Newman the sophisticated good guy and McQueen the everyman. They both give off a sense of authority and respect that would easily make you run into that damn building and save some high class butt.William Holden as the corporate tightwad was as always excellent, at this point in his career he was experiencing a sort of renaissance at playing characters that were not that likable, in stark contrast to his 40's-50's hey day. But the guy was a great actor and he pulls it off here.Richard Chamberlain was a surprise, I didn't remember he was in this movie, and he also was playing against type. I don't know everything about his career but what I do know is that in the roles I've seen him in, he always played the good guy. In this he is even worse than Holden's character, the guy oozes sleazeball-ness (is that a word? if it is then Chamberlain's character is it).Faye Dunaway is here mostly as eye candy really, she stands around looking lost, scared, teary eyed or a combination of the three.Robert Wagner( Mr. Hart himself) is also in the movie, I remember his scene with the secretary as they slowly figure out what is going on outside their apartment door. It was chilling.As with most disaster movies of the time we have what I call The Love Boat conundrum, between all the young people story lines there is a mature story line that usually includes actors of a certain age and from a certain Golden Age of Hollywood, in this case the roles go to (drum roll please)......Fred Astaire and Jennifer Jones! They are here to tug at your heart strings, as my young 11 year old daughter said to the TV, " Somebody please help the old man!!".And as I fondly recall, an added surprise that made me clap my little hands off as a kid, it's Bobby Brady! Yes, your favorite little brother is also in peril, every time he told someone to save his little sister I was deeply disappointed in not seeing Cindy coughing out smoke and soot.The scenes where they do all sorts of things to get people out of there were really intense, I had forgotten a lot of things and believe me the tension works. I for one wouldn't have gone in the little seat thing they used between buildings, that was crazy scary. Or as my daughter said, "That guy is Cray Cray".All in all I was very happy with the purchase, I'm sure we'll watch it again.

This review is for the WARNER HOME VIDEO BLURAY. An excellent transfer - wide screen (bars top and bottom). Clear picture, colour and sound, with extras and English Subtitles....BUT...Why oh why have WHV made the subs so hard to find? The film starts immediately, no menu or copyright notice. So in desperation I used my Pop Up Menu button on my remote and up came the menu, but that was hard to negotiate tho eventually I got the subs and they were fine, but why did I have to go through all the hoops? My wife particularly is HOH and subs are more and more essential for her enjoyment. Anyway - The film remains one of the great disaster films of the time (No CGI just good old SFX). Loaded with stars, and if I may just tell a story I remember reading about at the time - Both Newman and McQueen wanted top billing, and negotiations were at stalemate. Someone came up with the idea as follows - McQueen first name on the left of screen and on publicity (therefor in theory the first name you see) and Newman on the right but just ABOVE McQueen. Both parties happy! Look at the opening titles. This was I believe, a landmark idea. Of course both actors brought real star power to their roles and must have helped the film to it's box office success, as did the excellent fire and action scenes. A roster of stars and character actors all add to the mix and the result is, tho overlong, a most enjoyable film. Tho the final message about the building very high rise buildings without due care does sadly still ring true, and may just effect some viewers? I don't know-just wanted to mention it.

Dieser tolle Klassiker den ich aus Kindertagen kenne und der immer ein Reiser gewesen ist hat leider eine neue Tonspur in deutsch bekommen mit stimmen die nicht den alten deutschen Stimmen entsprechen. Da wird so viel pepp in die Restaurierung gesteckt aber das man dann evtl die alte Mono Spur mit den Original Stimmen dazu legt das finde ich schade. So billig ist die Scheibe ja auch nicht. Aber evtl kann dieser Wink mit dem Zaunpfahl etwas bewirken.😪

Der Film ist einfach toll.Oder besser gesagt er war.Die neue Synchronisation ist ja wirklich das Allerletzte. Warum macht man sowas.Der ganze Film wirkt so steril.Ein Stern ist noch zuviel.Man kann nur hoffen daß der Film wieder mit original Synchro veröffentlicht wird.

Schreckliche Synchronisation,schade habe mir die BluRay gekauft und bin sehr entäuscht von der neuen Synchronisation.Warum macht man so ein Mist wenn man eine gute Sychronisation hat,und wenn dann hätte man die alte doch mit raufpacken können, so hätte man die Wahl gehabt. Schade werde den Film nicht behalten.

Was haben sich die Verantwortlichen dabei gedacht? Wahrscheinlich NICHTS. Die Kino-Synchronfassung von 1975 ist nicht vorhanden. Nur eine neue, furchtbare. Sehr schade!