Firestarter (2022) is a film that gives us a chance to revisit ne of author Stephen King’s most famous books. Firestarter is about a little girl named Charlie (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) who has multiple superhuman and supernatural abilities, most notably, the ability to create fire and intense heat out of thin air. Charlie has possessed these powers since birth. But unfortunately, she does not know how to control these abilities.
Her parents, Andy (Zac Efron) and Vicky (Sydney Lemmon), also have superhuman abilities due to secret experiments they participated in while in college. Since Charlie was born, they have been on the run from the organization that gave them their powers.
An accidental discharge of Charlie’s powers while at school where she uses her powers alerts the organization of the family’s whereabouts. It is a game of cat and mouse as the family tries to escape the clutches of this mysterious organization.
This movie sounds much better in my summary than it ever does while on screen. I hate to say it, but the movie is just flat-out boring. The film never gives you any sense of or urgency. The organization comes and hunts down the family, but you never have any connection to the consequences of the evil organization’s actions.
Gloria Reubens plays the villain, Captain Hollister, and she seems to know this film is terrible. There are times when she is delivering lines, and it almost seems like she is trying not to laugh at how bad her dialogue was written. Zac Efron appears to be the only actor that tries throughout the film. Sure, we get a decent showing from John Beasley as Irv Manders and an intense cameo from Kurtwood Smith as Dr. Joseph Wanless, but for the most part, it doesn’t seem like anyone cares.
The biggest disappointment was how Ryan Armstrong was used in the film. She seemed to have difficulty showing whatever emotion the scene calls for, and her line delivery was downright awkward at times. I never believe uneven performances from child actors are the actor’s fault. They haven’t had the length of training or experience compared to adult actors. Successful child performances require a director to intentionally guide the child through their scenes and provide constant feedback on what actions need to be taken. Director Keith Thomas was not up to that task.
At the end of the day, I just didn’t care. I really doubt that you will care either.
Because the movie was so dull, I felt like I noticed one terrible decision after another. One strange decision was to make it seem like each scene was always sweltering hot, so much so that it seemed like the air was radiating around them. However, the characters seem to deal with it just fine. You never see a hint of perspiration on any actors, even with them wearing multiple layers of clothing. This is one of many post-production decisions that added nothing to the scene but another glaring misstep.
The movie could have been saved if it just let loose during the film’s climax, and we saw some crazy fire visual effects. But even that part was boring. At the end of the day, I just didn’t care. I really doubt that you will care either.
