Growing up, I was often subjected to Irwin Allen films because my father loved them. So, I was one of MANY people back in 1974 who saw this film in the theater. I didn't remember it all too well today (I was only 10 when I first saw it) but found it in a 4 pack of movies someone bought me....so I thought, what the heck...why not? However, I must tell you that most of the Irwin Allen films I've seen recently I didn't like...and I was expecting the same for "The Towering Inferno". Why do I say I am not a huge Irwin Allen film fan? Well, a few things he was known for I don't care for in movies....explosions and mayhem as well as many, many 'guest starring roles'...you know, when the film's budget seems to mostly be on getting as many big stars and has-beens to appear in it. This is why I am not a huge fan of "Airport" and its sequels as well as "Midway"...too many guests and not enough money spent on writing. "The Towering Inferno" has all of this...so it's definitely going to be a tough sell for me.The plot to the film is pretty simple. The world's tallest building is being dedicated but what the chief architect (Paul Newman) does not realize is that the boss' pusillanimous son-in-law (Richard Chamberlain) is a weasel but substituted the wiring in the specs with much cheaper wiring that makes the place a giant tinderbox. Only after a big gala party begins on the rooftop do they realize that the place is ablaze and a lotta folks are gonna die.For what it was, this film actually surprised me. Sure, there are some of the usual one-dimensional Irwin Allen characters but a few were pretty interesting and the film seemed to make the most out of the disaster genre. I especially appreciate its take on human nature, as many of the folks are simply selfish idiots! My only complaint is that MOST of the women in the film are simply there to scream and cry! Now I am NOT saying it's a great film...but if you have to watch a disaster flick, this is much better than most.

At this point in time Hollywood would come up with an idea and then beat it to death. The Towering Inferno is the story of a fire in a skyscraper and all the implications of it. We have the obligatory ensemble cast. We have good guys and bad guys. If we use "Airport" as a benchmark, there is the person who, despite warnings to the contrary, does things that endanger everyone. There is the old couple who must stay together because they have always loved each other. There is the heroic fellow who was a coward before. There is the guy everyone respected who now is a coward. There is the suspense element with the rescue forces doing their best but realizing they had never anticipated this. The biggest positive is that it keeps one on the edge of his/her seat. It is non-stop action and really long.

"They don't make 'em like they used to," the pundits grumble, but in case of The Towering Inferno, Hollywood would probably breathe a sigh of relief. In a completely obtuse feat of life-imitates-art, everything about the picture, like its titular tower, insisted on such grandiose proportions it threatened collapse. Too big for one studio to produce (for a sense of how unprecedented the Fox/WB co-production and merger of disaster yarns was, think how jaw-dropping the recent Sony/Marvel Studios sharing of Spider-Man was), the twin financiers pitted their smorgasbord of feuding stars against a bevy of life-threatening practical disaster effects throughout a running time so voluminous it's closer to Lawrence of Arabia than The Poseidon Adventure. And the ensuing picture? Well, it's hardly a neorealist account of architectural instability, but it's also impressively grounded in its fun for a film renowned for sounding so silly, and holds up as a film beneath its infamy. If ever there was a poignant reminder of the profound differences between contemporary blockbusters and those of the 1970s, The Towering Inferno is it. First, and inescapably, the film is looooooong, with a running time and pace sure to boggle contemporary attention spans. Still, while the film's running time may be bloated, the proceedings are anything but flabby, with each scene employed towards meticulous character and tension building, with ominous side comments regarding shirked safety standards stacking up until the inevitable blaze. And while the film's editing may not hammer home urgency to the extent we'd now expect, its careful cross-cutting does keep impressive track of the film's laundry list of subplots, with romances, trysts, and feuds brewing amidst the colourful cast desperately stewing inside their colossal firetrap. Could we had easily snipped out one to three of these vignettes, giving bladders worldwide a reprieve, and without anyone the wiser or even missing them? Sure, but part of the film's charm is the tender fastidiousness it lends each of its subjects, from guilt execs to flustered debutantes, to grim firefighters at work (and after the conditions they're subjected to here, the film's lavish dedication to working firefighters rings very true). Even a side character's cat, glimpsed in one scene, is given its due screen time, courtesy of O.J. Simpson's uber-professional head of security. We may only have limited time with each of our cast of characters, but the film's investment in their hopes and dreams does land us unexpectedly invested in their wellbeing, superficially or not. But how could the film's initial selling point as an effects extravaganza possibly hold up? Well, fairly well, actually. The set design is spectacular, concocting a gleaming behemoth of a building that feels simultaneously dauntingly vast and claustrophobic (you can imagine Die Hard's designers furiously scribbling notes throughout) - and doubly so when set on fire. It's here that the film's insistence on practical fire effects pays off - as the actors sweat and singe, we can practically feel the scorching heat radiating from the screen, as the catastrophic blaze is hugely convincing through being controlled, but hardly staged. And, granted, the film's stunts may pale in comparison to contemporary decades of ante-upping, but their smallness, combined with Irwin Allen's airtight direction, lends an air of verisimilitude. Instead of spectacle- for-spectacle's sake, our central set-pieces involve the minutiae of evacuation procedures and fire safety checklists to an almost procedural profiling extent, which is not only impressively engrossing (yes, really), but all the more liable to get viewers hooked by less audacious acrobatics. If anything, the inauspiciousness of the stunts makes them feel all the more uncomfortably believable - you would get stuck suspending yourself from a hanging pipe, hesitating before a five foot drop for fifteen minutes - which helps keep things sizzling with tension. Sure, a lot of the dialogue lays critical exposition on a bit thick ("We were supposed to have fire drills! But we never did!!"), and the rampant 1970s suspicion and scorn towards high-rises is simultaneously amusing and sobering, but the ineffable John Williams' sparkly score keeps things as a brisk and breezy adventure caper throughout, even as the stakes raise, and lives are lost(!) throughout. Fox and WB were wise to invest in their cabal of stars, as the almost incomparable cast employ their star personas towards instant characterization and audience investment, working wonders with skeletal build up. Paul Newman and Steve McQueen's respective craggy charisma work wonders in complimenting one another as guilt-ridden architect and cool, unflappable fire chief, and both work wonders in keeping a level-headed emotional centre amidst the flurry of characters and flames. William Holden's loquacious wit provides a welcomely sympathetic twist on the 'Mayor from Jaws/John Hammond from Jurassic Park' archetype, and while Faye Dunaway may be fairly underused as an anxious bystander for the most part, she sizzles in her few key scenes, particularly when exchanging adorably flirty banter with Newman. Richard Chamberlain is delightfully seedy as the resentful son-in-law contractor whose cut corners let to the fire, and Chamberlain carefully allows his character's pettiness to simmer without descending into moustache-twirling. Finally, Fred Astaire and Jennifer Jones' bashful courting may occupy one of the film's more extraneous asides, but they're so effervescently lovable they're easily worth the extra sitting. In short (unlike anything else in the picture), The Towering Inferno's archaic indulgences may not live up to the self-important epics of old it styles itself after, particularly in never quite pushing the envelope cinematically enough for its looming disaster to instil more than cursory breathlessness. And yet, the charm holds. Tautly directed, superbly cast, and with indisputably quality set and effects, it's more adventure jaunt than disaster crisis, but worth it as such. This fire burns out quickly, but is sure to leave embers of affection glowing softly for years to come. -7/10

Following the smashing success of "The Poseidon Adventure", veteran producer Irwin Allen jumped back on the band wagon of producing tense, star-filled dramas of humanity in jeopardy for one reason or another. Following the big boat came this big skyscraper, and of course, this lead to his big disaster with an exploding volcano. Other copy-cat producers created movies about exploding blimps (three of them including a historical look back at "The Hindenberg" and two involving blimps hovering over crowded sporting events), rollercoasters flying off of their hinges, and of course, airplanes falling from the sky. All of them featured the most popular leading stars of the day and some surprising veterans making amusing comebacks."The Towering Inferno" is a scary thought in a world still remembering the impact of 9/11, and when this movie first came out, the World Trade Centers had only been open for a short time. Like "The Poseidon Adventure", an all-star cast gets together to celebrate a huge event, only to find their lives in jeopardy when disaster strikes. What it lacks in comparison to "The Poseidon Adventure" was that film's big heart, even though one of the plot lines attempted to keep that detail here. But this is a film about corporate greed and ego, and it is building owner William Holden's desire to own the world's tallest building, so perhaps it was intended for more of a message picture than one of holiday sentiment surrounded by tragedy.1950's rival tough guys (Paul Newman and Steve McQueen) fight over who will be the hero here, with Newman as Holden's partner and McQueen as fire chief. Newman is engaged to magazine editor Faye Dunaway which doesn't mean much because the storyline surrounding their relationship is never really developed and Dunaway, very busy in films in 1974, really has little to do. The most interesting storyline surrounds conman Fred Astaire (in an Oscar Nominated role) and his younger lady love (veteran actress Jennifer Jones) and their attempts to get out of the burning building. Susan Flannery, then at the top of her popularity on daytime's "Days of Our Lives", got a great deal of attention as one of the fire's victims.The set-up to the cause of the fire and how it spreads takes up much of the film's three hour running time, and moves into the attempts to rescue those trapped inside. Special effects are amazing, and overall, the film is extremely entertaining. However, an attempt to create another hit song like "The Morning After" (from "The Poseidon Adventure") is missed with "We May Never Love Like This Again" which did go on to win an Oscar but is certainly not as well remembered as Maureen McGovern's previous hit. She actually gets to appear on screen here, singing a bit of the song, unlike in "Poseidon".Fans of Astaire will be surprised to learn that this was his only trip to the Oscars as a nominee, never having been nominated for any of his classic musical films. He basically plays a non-singing, barely dancing version of all his other characters, the charming, dashing older man who just happens to be an ex-con. Jones is still gorgeous thirty years after receiving her Oscar. Other stars try to make an impression in the film, but sadly, Richard Chamberlain, Robert Wagner, Robert Vaughan and then football hero O.J. Simpson end up sidetracked when compared to the impact of the other stars. While this is far from being a miss, it is certainly not worthy of the hype it had at the time, especially its inclusion as an Oscar Nominee for Best Picture.