Jim Slotek (21 May 2012)

A blazing hagiography replete with swelling strings in the soundtrack and a plot that manipulates heartstrings with equal shamelessness.

Steven (21 May 2012)

Not enough rungs!

Starring Joaquin Phoenix and John Travolta. This testosterone filled drama tries to excite but the fire burns out quickly. Slow after the first sequence, this movie never really seems to get going. Its in the "Flashback" category for movies. Some humorous moments and some traumatic moments, but they just don't give you much time to really feel sorry for the characters. They don't get you to feel their pain. Over dramatic at times and too Hollywood this Ladder didn'thave enough rungs to make it to the top!

Rob (19 May 2012)

Who snuck a camera into my fire station?

I asked myself that several times. The hard work, the hard play between calls, the family life. Ladder 49 seemed less like a feature film and more like a documantery. Call me biased (and many will, I'm sure) but I gave the film the grades I did because they got it right. The story centers on one firefighter and his two families-the one at home, and the one in the fire station. It is told through flashbacks against the framework of Jack's (J. Phoenix) fellow firefighters work to rescue him at a high-rise fire. The scenes are well scripted, the characters and their actions quite believeable (especially the practical jokes and the way firefighters work and live together), and the attention to detail is almost perfect. Yes, there will be times firefighters will say, "I can't believe they did THAT!", but it doesn't distract from the movie like previous films. The actors went through training at the Baltimore Fire Academy, and their hard work shows. Sounding a roof, throwing ladders, tagging hydrants, all the actions we perform on a daily basis looked smooth, like they'd been doing this for years. Everyone did their best to get it right. The portrayals of the family and the stresses and fears they must deal with are just about perfect mirrors of real life (after the private screening, one firefighter was heard joking, "Nope, the wife's not going to see this one.") Being this is Hollywood, some parts of the visuals couldn't be completly real. While you see a good example in one scene of the stratification of smoke layers in a room, you still can see much better than in the real thing. The nosepieces are left out of the SCBA masks so you can see the actors faces, but at least they are wearing them when needed in this picture. On the whole, however, the minor omissions and changes needed to make a movie don't detract from the show. Firefighters and fire buffs will barely notice them, and everyone else won't. Overall, I have to give Ladder 49 the high grade. The cast and crew did an outstanding job.

Ruby Liang (19 May 2012)

The life of a fireman - the sheer bravery is in the simple straightforward delivery of the movie, almost a documentary without talking heads - a family movie alright

For analogy, this is your basic regular American hamburger - not awhopper with added cheese. No spice. Not peppered up. The movie "Ladder49" is brave in itself that the straightforward script included no foullanguage, no cliff-hanger action sequence, sappy melodrama or moralpreaching. It's telling the life of a fireman as it is through simpleeveryday vignettes, the rookie fireman, the camaraderie at thefirehouse, the family anguish - the profession of a fireman that manyof us might have taken for granted. This can very well be a simpletelling of the life of a policeman or a soldier in active dutyoverseas. Unless something disastrous really happens and drasticallyaffects us close to home, we can be unaware of how lucky we are, beingable to go about our everyday life, 'safely and peacefully' living inAmerica, with local law enforcement, firefighting emergency servicesand homeland security efforts available to us. There are visual effects of fires a-blazing and fire fighting scenesinside and outside of buildings, but there's no dramatic build up to'glamour' dazzle you like other Hollywood (blockbuster) movies. Theinitial sequence of the movie suggests a 'hanging' question: willJoaquin Phoenix's character (Jack) survive? But the diverted flashbackskeep our interest: how this rookie fireman came to be a firefighter inaction, building a family, the family strife around his dream of a'riskier' role on Engine 33 team, the loss of lives, the saving oflives. The pace may be leisurely at times and the plot may seem mild tosome. We get to see Joaquin Phoenix in a 'lighter' less demanding role(vs. "Gladiator" 2000, "Buffalo Soldiers" 2001 or "Clay Pigeons" 1998).John Travolta is in a supporting role (Captain Mike), giving lightness(smiles) and dignity to the fire chief he portrays.This is not like "Backdraft" 1991. The apparent danger and risks of thelife of a fireman and family is the crux of the storyline. This is afamily fare for all - a tribute to the firefighters whose bravery weare grateful of. I appreciate the fact that death is treated as part oflife and that we do not go about laying blame on others or beatourselves up (we learn, stick together and go on). Ah, the firmgentleness in his direction, Jay Russell (who directed "TuckEverlasting" 2002, "My Dog Skip" 2000) doesn't thrust anything in ourface, yet subtly provides short gem moments, and the noteworthy wordscoming from Travolta, we would remember, won't we?

(17 May 2012)

Pales

When I saw previews for this movie, I thought it was going to be a lot like "Backdraft". If only. This movie pales by comparison. Too plodding, too shallow (although a lot of time is spent trying to do character development), and too safe. It's like they had nothing else to do, so why not make this movie.

Megan Lehmann (17 May 2012)

Plays as if the filmmakers compiled a list of every smoke-eater cliché imaginable and then resolutely set about crossing them off.

Kevin Williamson (17 May 2012)

In treating its blaze-battling subjects with such reverence, the filmmakers douse the storytelling sparks that are so desperately required.

The_Angry_Critic (16 May 2012)

Surprisingly good.

This film kind of took me by quite a surprise, as the previews led meto believe that this was just another Travolta flop tending to the fewaudiences that haven't seen "Backdraft", but Ladder turned out to be apleasant look into the daily life of a firefighter."Ladder 49" involves Jack Morrison (Phoenix) who is trapped inmulti-tiered factory reflecting on life from his first day on the jobto this point focusing on his family's ordeals and adjustments on thetoll the life of firefighting takes on a family.The story is somewhat predictable, but will still draw you in as theemotions are in full gear as Morrison is somewhat addicted to theadrenaline of rushing into a burning building putting his life atsevere risk and the future of his family in jeopardy to save one life.The acting is also noticeably sound as even Travolta, who still livingoff his Pulp Fiction miracle, makes a clean act as the fire chief whoprovides several roles to his fellow fighters to include boss, friend,brother, father and mentor.As far as realism goes, I bought into it. Then again, I'm not a realfirefighter and don't no how much the movie really reflects the morale,camaraderie and the risks these men take. I did question the motives ofthe main characters as later in the film he transfers to Search andRescue, were one his friends died and another suffered a career endinginjury, with his wife expressing several times how much she hates hisprofession let alone a transfer to a more dangerous position. But, Iguess that's the persona the film wants to portray. This movie has evenhas satisfying but quite disheartening ending that will even make mostmen misty-eyed.This movie had more of purpose that projected which is why I give ithigh regards. If you're looking for an action flick you might bedisappointed as this one might sit better in the "Drama" section. Allin all this film is worth a rent and may have you thinking when all issaid and done.

(16 May 2012)

Don't base a movie on the actor

Well, some of us don't have a heart for people that sacrafice their lives to save others. For all of you dumbasses who gave this movie a bad review cause you don't like John Travolta you don't need to write reviews anymore. Yeah I don't like some actors either but you can't rate a movie bad just because you dont like someone. This movie is not about one actor its about firefighters and seeing what they actually do. Rate movies because of the quality of movie. John Travolta's acting wasn't so terrible that the movie was a waste of time. It has amazing special effects and you are brought into every fire the movie has. The acting was not bad at all and I give it a four stars because overall this movie came together and made out for a surperb ending. Yeah its sad but its life and this is what real firefighters go through. My dad is a firefighter and though he isn't running into 50 story buildings he has still been inside a burning building and helped people. Maybe this is what made me open up and enjoy the movie and be touched by it so much. Maybe some of you need to loose firefighter friends to open your eyes up and see there is more to a movie than one actor. And don't go watch it if you dont like John Travolta so people don't have to hear your crap about him. For all of you who gave this a bad rating you need to open up and realize that just cause you don't like an actor doens't meen a movie is bad. Look at the movie as a whole. Don't write bad reviews cause you don't like John Travolta!!

Boba_Fett1138 (16 May 2012)

All the clichés you could expect from a movie about firefighters are present here.

"Ladder 49" is by no means a bad movie and as a matter of fact, it's aprofessionally made production, with some good actors in it, but it'sjust that everything in the movie is very formulaic and all the typicalclichés you could expect in a movie about firefighters are presenthere. The movie has no real surprises in it and because of that none ofthe emotions come over as real. Also compared to "Backdraft", thismovie is totally obsolete. It adds nothing to the firefighter moviegenre (..as if that even is a genre). "Ladder 49" and "Backdraft" aretwo similar movies in several ways but "Backdraft" is the better onesimply because it has better emotions, character building and sequencesfeaturing fire. It however is of course not fair to compare this twomovie just simply because they both are about firefighters. Iunderstand that "Ladder 49" and "Backdraft" are two different moviemade with different intentions. However "Ladder 49" is self to blamefor this constant comparisons. It copies elements and scene's from"Backdraft" and obviously tries to top the movie in every way possible.Mission failed though...The storytelling isn't done in the best way. The non-linearstorytelling wasn't the best choice for this movie. If the story wastold in a more 'normal' way, the emotions and the ending would perhapshad worked better for me. I wasn't exactly grabbed by the story and itscharacter and both were lacking. Not really the actors fault, blame iton the cliché filled script instead. It's obvious that the movie makerswanted to portray the firefighters as true heroes. If the script hadn'tbeen filled with so many clichés, they might had succeeded in this.The fire sequences were nicely made but to be honest they weren'tanything thrilling or exciting. The true essence of the movie is on thecharacters and the dramatic moments but since the movie isn't exactlysuccessful in this, the movie as a whole also quite isn't.The musical score by William Ross was better than anticipated andJoaquin Phoenix is a wonderful actor. This truly were the two bestelements of the movie.Nicely made but as a movie not original enough and because of that alsoquite pointless. Just watch the Ron Howard movie "Backdraft" instead.6/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

Tvandiejie (11 May 2012)

Very realistic

I like to be surprised and I was with this movie. Jokingly andcompletely inaccurate I duped it Backdraft 911 based on the trailers Ihad seen in theaters before. My wife thought differently and I humoredher. I was so delighted to see a very realistic chronicle of a serious firefighter in it not for the glory, but to make a difference in the world.Joaquin Phoenix is making a name for himself and he is becoming one ofthe great movie players of our time. Also a good bet: not thetraditional and expected ending to this movie. Even I had to fight atear.Great job and thanks to all the players for making this a heart warmingand real life drama!

romy-1 (11 May 2012)

better than Backdraft

I was lucky enough to see a preview screening with members from ourfiredepartment, and to a person everyone loved the movie the action thestory and the characters. The rescue aspect of the story wassuspenseful, and emotional. The fire scenes were really great. And Iwas pleasantly surprised by the very sweet love story between Jack andhis wife.A previous comment said that a fire fighter only sees a big fire once.Frompersonal experience I very much disagree All you have to do is checkthe photo stories on firehouse.com to see that it's a daily event. Theonly problem I have with the movie is the same fault of all firefighter movies. Fire departments do more than just fire. They respondto medical emergencies, car wrecks, waterrescues and more. The role of women in the fire service and the importance of volunteersis often over looked. I feel the movie is best seen on the big screento get the full effect of the awesome visuals. The story line of loveand friendship make it a solid film, with a really strong ending.

Eazy91 (09 May 2012)

A weak flame

Joaquin Phoenix, John Travolta, Morris Chestnut, Robert Patrick,Balthazar Getty, Jay Hernandez, Jacida Barret. Directed by Jay Russell.I can tell by after watching this travesty, John Travolta's performancewas the only thing that kept the fire aflame. The story has two keyplaces in the present and in the past, in the present a firefighterJack Morrison (Phoenix) lies in a ditch or so while he has flashbacksof when he was just a rookie in the house. While in the ditch he awaitsMike's (Travolta) crew to help him get out of the smoldering buildingas he has flashbacks of some of the problems he faced. And what would afireman movie be without the nagging wife Linda Morrison (Barrett) inwhich she yells at Jack to be careful and switch jobs etc. Ladder 49 isnothing but a weak flame the story gets lost in the smoke and yourinterest burns in flames. This might just be Joaquin's worst film sinceThe Village. My final rating for Ladder 49 5/10.

Yo dawg (08 May 2012)

Don't read, I mention the ending! unless u saw it

I recently saw the movie and I have very mixed reviews. The movie was better done than Backdraft, I will say that much, but as a Firefighter myself I noticed many things that bothered me. The fire where the guy on the roof fell through, if I remember correctly there was little to no indicators that the roof was unstable. Usually if there is some bad fire under the roof there is bubbling tar, smoke seeping through cracks SOMEWHERE, sagging sections of the roof, but it looked pretty sound to me. Second they had no airpacks or roof saws to ventilate. granted if you had to you could ventilate with an axe, but it's probably not preferred by most. I just think they were taking it too lightly, when one of the most dangerous places to be is on the roof. And finally, Jack's death scene... I couldn't believe that. First of all, his PASS device was about as loud as some kind of toy, if even that. Second of all, they had voice communication with him meaning he was still alive. The "You go, we go" saying in Backdraft was kind of cheesy but not far from the truth. It's more understood than said in the fire service. In a fire, we're all each other has and take it very seriously. On 9-11 the firefighters never gave up hope and gave everything they had to try and find anyone alive when the conditions were much worse and less likely to find survivors. I guarantee if they had communication with any survivors, they would have never backed down until they got them. I don't think the situation would be any different if this scenario occured in real life. I just don't see firefighters backing down a rescue effort when they know their brother is still alive. The building was in bad shape but a collapse didn't seem immanent. I just don't see it... but over all it was pretty accurate. I guess the ending ruined it for me... I have other discrepancies but it's just a firefighter being nit picky.

(05 May 2012)

A Great Movie!

Ladder 49 is a great movie. It gives firemen the recognition they deserve. It's about a fireman named Jack Morrison (Joaquin Pheonix) and his life as a fireman. Why do some people rush into buildings, when everyone else is rushing out?

(05 May 2012)

Whole hearted 5 Stars

Maybe am a little Bias, but my family descends from a long line within the fireservice: Great Grandfather, grandfather, dad, mom, brother and myself. Maybe that is why ladder 49struck such a chord inside me.Ladder 49 opens with Jaquin Pheonix racing into a burning warehouse with word that somewhere within the inferno are two possible survivors. When the situation shifts for the worst, Pheonix's character is haunted by the memories of a loving family outside the blaze. What follows in this scene and continues throughout the film, are arguably some of the most intense fire-situations ever captured for a movie. Most people may think of Backdraft, a Ron Howard film, but to me Backdraft had way too many unbelievable flaws to be realistic and ended up being just a good action flick. (Example - to name one - Firefighters racing into a burning building full of smoke, with nothing but their eye visors flipped down. Reason? They said we, the audience wouldn't be able to tell the difference between actors. Realism...or star power... hm, tough choice. This viewer would rather see intensity of an actual situation, rather than the glitz of a well-makuped actor. What has young Mr Baldwin done since Backdraft again? I keep forgetting.) Climbing off soapbox.I sometimes catch myself throwing this phrase around loosely, but with this I have no doubt, Ladder 49 is one of the 50 best films I have ever seen in my lifetime. John Travolta gives one of his most sincerest performances as a firechief (as my dad was) trying to protect his men, both at work and home. The supporting cast is excellent and I believed every minute of what I was watching. This coming from someone who has spent their entire life around the fire hall.The dvd is spectacular. The dolby digital home theater sound mix couldn't be better. Deep rumblings, wisping flames, spewing steam, and violent explosions rain throughout. The only thing keeping me from from the action, was room temperature. What agreat mix! The video quality is excellent as well; deep blacks and bright flames are well defined and skin tones are natural with crisp details staying true to the directors vision.Ladder 49 is a brilliant and moving film, capturing the brotherhood, heartbreaks, and plentiful adrenaline rushes of working in the fire industry. I was a dispatcher for 2 years, the real heroes are the remaining members of my family I mentioned above. I wish we could give the pro-athletes 30 grand a year and give the millions to our firefighters and paramedics. They deserve it. ~SAOS~

imdb-2965 (28 April 2012)

Unrealistic

First off, I'm not a firefighter, but I'm in some kind ofpara-firefighting unit (the guys who get called if an earthquake hitsand the real firefighters need more people for SAR), so I had sometraining and simulation but I have no real-life experience.But still, there are some points one notices as totally unbelievable. Ican understand that they removed the mouth/nose-pieces of the masks andthat there is not enough smoke, because the public would otherwise seenothing. But some things defy logic: - No second mask attached to the oxygen. How the hell do you want torescue people trough the smoke without one? - Rappelling people. No, it's not done like that. I'd be screaming tooif somebody hitched a rope around me in that fashion and hung me from abuilding. If I could scream, that is, and not pass out from want of airbecause the rope squeezes my lungs. The second time when they'reabseiling Jack it's better but still weird.- "Aim high". No, you bloody don't. You always fight fire from as lowas possible. You don't fight want to sprinkle flames, you'll want toextinguish the fire, and that's below the flames.- No discipline. They're running around like chicken. And they shoutall the time, instead of using radio, and keeping discipline.- No tactics. Why don't they work in teams of at least two? You stillcan get separated, but it takes much more than if everyone justscurries around alone in search for victims.- Do they really enter buildings without bringing water? I Europe,firefighters would never enter a burning building without.- Firefighters on the roof. WTF do they think they're doing therewithout security lines or water? - Exploding rooms. Wood and brick doesnot "explode suddenly".The better points are actually camaraderie and the othernon-firefighting parts of the movie. It's a lot of kitsch, but that'salright. I'll give it a point for this.

(27 April 2012)

Great movie that really tugs at your heart

This movie really shows how firemen risk their lives to save others. They really are selfless. I can't imagine doing what they do year in and year out. It also shows the strength of their families. They have to deal with so much stress and worry as well. I really liked how the movie kept flashing between past and present. I was upset by the ending. That was not how I would have chosen to end it, but I'm not the one being paid to direct. This is one definitely worth watching.

(21 April 2012)

Great

This movie is great and very sad. I highly recommend this movie, you wont be disapointed.

Desson Thomson (20 April 2012)

Even the best scenes feel canned, secondhand, packaged. We've seen this all before.