Amazon.com: Stephen King wasn't exactly in peak form when he wrote Firestarter, so this 1984 movie adaptation was at a disadvantage even before the cameras rolled. There were so many King movies being made at the time that this one's weaknesses became even more apparent. In her first film role after her memorable appearance in E.T., Drew Barrymore stars as a little girl whose parents acquired strange mental powers after participating in a secret government experiment. From this genetic background she has developed the mysterious ability to set anything on fire at will, especially when she's angry. That makes her very interesting to government officials seeking to exploit her skill as a secret weapon. Her father seeks to protect her by using his powers of mind-control, and George C. Scott plays an Indian who believes the girl must be destroyed. There's a routine climax involving a lot of impressive pyrotechnics, but none of this is grounded in a dramatically solid foundation, and none of the characters are developed enough for us to care about them. So the movie gradually turns into a laughable thriller with no suspense whatsoever. It's a movie only a pyromaniac could love. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - "Just BACK OFF BACK OFF!!!!"
I love this movie, as child, I wish I had her powers, but thank god I didn't!!!! (ha-ha) This movie was wonderful!!!!
Rating: - Too much talking
I was really, really bored one day and just grabbed something to watch that day. This movie.
Good story, obviously Stephen King, but as a movie, it dosen't work for me.
The acting felt stiff and the whole movie was too "book-movie".
I mean that the characters just stand there, doing nothing, because in a book, you have to read the text for the pace to move.
But in the movie, it's like the characters turn to stone, doing nothing, because it takes such a long time to say a line.
Especially the scene where the Dad and Charlie are at the old peoples house, the ... Read More
Rating: - Great film, not so great DVD.
Buy the new double collection, it has much better quality. Other than that, this is a great Stephen King adaptation and I would recomend it to King movie fans.
Rating: - Burn Baby Burn !
If you liked the movie called Scanners and if you liked the movie Christine, then you will probably like Firestarter. They are all similar pace wise and have some similar music in the background. I never read the Firestarter book so I can't compare them right now.
The acting is a little unbelievable when it comes to the secondary acting (ie goverment agents that act weird and goofy for no reason), but the main actors do a darn good job for how many takes they were given. Drew Barrymore is mostly realistic, except for two scenes where she seems to be at the end of a long day of shooting. ... Read More
Rating: - Turning the Heat Up
FIRESTARTER is one of Stephen King's best stories--surreal, yet plausible; both frightening and cheering. Drew Barrymore's performance warms hearts and burns villains. Great story, great movie--perhaps the star performance in Barrymore's career.
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