For those of you who don't recognize the names or the picture, let me introduce you to two of the toughest and sexiest heroes to ever grace the silver screen. Meet Doug Roberts (Paul Newman) and Michael O'Hallorhan (Steve McQueen), our two men of action from that great disaster movie, The Towering Inferno.
Doug is the brilliant architect who just returned to San Francisco, from an out of town job interview, to help dedicate the 138 story building he helped to design. There is going to be a grand party on the 135th floor to celebrate the opening of the tallest building in the world. Little did he know that the electrical plans he called for, where carried through and some faulty wiring is going to burn his baby to the ground, along with a vast array of workers, residents, guests, and fire fighters. Once that nasty fire does get going, SFFD Battalion Chief Michael O'Hallorhan arrives on the scene to try to figure out how to fight a fire that started on the 81st floor and is going straight up.
These two guys need to check their egos and work together to save as many lives as they can. They are both men of action and are willing to risk their own lives to put this fire out and keep more people from dying. Though both of them men are heroic and deserve to be recognized for their bravery, Doug is the one that stands out the most to me in this movie.
He doesn't need to take the actions he does to save everyone else, but because he's the one who designed the building, he feels as if he is responsible for the fire. He even starts to doubt whether or not a building this size should ever been built. He goes through the most growth as a character and he is all that more interesting for it.
Now don't get me wrong I still like Mike, or he wouldn't be part of this post, but his heroics are part of the job. Now do I think he goes above and beyond what's expected of him, of course I do. Some of the stuff he does is amazing, don't believe watch the movie, but it's still who he is as a character.
I would urge everyone who has not seen his movie to do so. The movie and these two characters will enthrall and captivate your imagination the entire time. I wish there were more movie heroes like this gracing the screen, instead of the trigger happy glorified thugs we have today.
I keep discovering so many new movies and shows here that I'd never heard of before. I'll have to check this one out. Sounds intense.
ReplyDeleteNever saw the movie, sounds like a good one to watch with my husband. Love the header, by the way.
ReplyDeleteWow - I managed to get in - guess my work is no longer blocking this type of site! Hi Ryan, got your message, miss you!!!
ReplyDeleteI love this movie so much that I'm surprised I don't own it yet. I also went on my first real date to see it back in high school! This is probably the greatest of the all-star cast blockbuster disaster movies from that period (although the original Poseidon Adventure comes close!).
oh my, it has been a long time since I have thought of this movie. Oh my, a long time. Thanks for the refresher on this. :)
ReplyDeleteI never saw Towering Inferno, but I sure did recognize Paul Newman and Steve McQueen!!
ReplyDeleteI saw The Towering Inferno in the theater and then, years later, either bought or rented a copy (I can't be sure -- we're kind of chaotic, at the moment). It really held up well over time. I think I was a little surprised at the all-star cast. Maybe I'd just forgotten who was in it, but Steve McQueen and Paul Newman are timeless in any movie.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE that movie if only for Steve...sigh
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