Year:
2004
Studio:
Touchstone Pictures/Beacon Pictures
Feature:
3/5
Ladder 49 is the
fictional story of Fireman Jack Morrison (Joaquin Phoenix). We start
out with a massive grain processing plant fire. A good 'ol
five-alarmer. Jack is there with his team in Ladder 49 and is separated
from them when he goes in to look for another victim while the rest of
his team rescues a couple of victims. Jack manages to rescue the last
victim but as he's lowring the victim down on a rope, an explosion
buckles the floor underneath him and he falls from the 12th floor to a
lower floor.
At this point the movie is done in flashbacks of the last ten years as
we follow Jack from his beginnings as a Probie Fireman to today,
meanwhile we keep coming back to today where a little more of the Jack
rescue is told. It reminds me of how For Love of the Game was done: a
man's career as told in flashbacks framed by his last great event.
We meet Captain Mike Kennedy (John Travolta) and the crew of Ladder 49
Engine 33. I never new this from watching Firemen in movies, but there
are two teams in the firehouse. There's the Engine team that fights the
fire and the truck team (Ladder 49) who do search and rescue. Jack
starts out as a hoseman on the engine team and moves up to the truck
team after his best friend is killed in a fire.
The movie is about the firefighting life. The community of
firefighters. Most everyone is Catholic (the firefighters are part of
the Baltimore City Fire Department). Jack meets a nice girl, Linda
(Jacinda Barrett) who he pursues and eventually marries and has two
kids with her. They have to deal with tragedy when Jack's best friend
is killed and when another firefighter is horribly scarred in another
fire.
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And then there are moments of
heroice. How Jack and his team go in when sane people are running out.
They go in and look for victims and rescue them. They're scared but
they're doing their job. It's especially interesting to see how the
danger affects Jack, his wife and kids, and how Jack feels about the
job he's doing and the risks he's taking.
Appropriately and unfortunately, Jack does die in the big fire. We end
the movie with a fine eulogy delivered by Mike Kennedy, who has been
Jack's friend and mentor for a decade. It's a tribute to all
firefighters who have died in the line of duty. Very tearful and moving.
Joaquin Phoenix does a fine job as the main actor. Not the best looking
person in the world, he has a unique look and it's a testament to his
acting skills that he can make a positive impression despite his looks.
John Travolta also does a good job in a supporting role. Jacinda
Barrett is pretty without being stunning and somehow fits Phoenix's
looks.
I thought the movie at times was a bit slow. The problem with having to
do a life-story sort of film is that you have to skip around a lot
which can give viewers a detached feeling. You do get a feeling of
character growth and accomplishment. But it does seem a bit rushed at
times and at other times you have scenes that go on a bit long to get
their point across.
Overall it's a nice movie. A good drama. It's a good movie about
firefighters.
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