Backdraft (film)
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Backdraft is an American movie released in 1991, directed by Ron Howard and written by Gregory Widen. Kurt Russell, William Baldwin, Robert De Niro and Scott Glenn star. Donald Sutherland, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Rebecca De Mornay, Jason Gedrick and J.T. Walsh are also featured. The story is about firefighters in Chicago on the trail of a serial arsonist.
The film received three Academy Award nominations. It also received two nominations at the first annual MTV Movie Awards.
Featured in the film are original songs performed by The Drovers, a Chicago band that was heavily influenced by Irish traditional music. The titles of the tracks are "Unpromised Land," "Nothing for You" and "Granuille Reels." The Drovers appeared four years later in the motion picture Blink, which also was filmed in Chicago.
There is an exhibit at Universal Studios where you can learn about the making of the movie and experience a real one.
The movie tells the story of a group of Chicago firefighters, two of whom are brothers. Stephen McCaffrey (Kurt Russell), the elder of the two brothers, is slowly being taken over by the fires that he fights. Beating the fire becomes an obsession with him. He is always at the heart of the fire - the most dangerous place to be. Brian (William Baldwin) is a bit of a drifter who has become a firefighter after a number of other failed careers. He is looked down on by his elder brother who expects him to fail in his newly chosen career.
Donald Rimgale (Robert De Niro) is the fire investigator. He is called in because a number of fires that have occurred have somewhat sinister connections. Rimgale is dedicated to his job, an ex-firefighter. An arsonist Ronald Bartel (Donald Sutherland) has been imprisoned for a number of years and can appear very normal on occasions but at the mention of fire his mind becomes obsessed with the idea of the living fire, one that takes over not only buildings but also people's lives. His latest application for bail is turned down during the story. A fictional chemical substance, trychtichlorate, is used by the arsonist to set the fires.
The longest serving of all the firefighters, John "Axe" Adcox (Scott Glenn), served with the McCaffrey's father in the fire service and was like an uncle to the two boys when their father died. He takes great pride in his work and has a love of the fire department. Obviously brave, he is the firefighter who "carries the hose" and attacks the fire head on, he is the ones starting the fires.
Martin Swayzak (J.T. Walsh) is an alderman of the city. He has obvious hopes of being re-elected but has had to make a number of budget cuts both to the fire service and also to other city institutions. The fire service believes that the cuts that he has made are endangering the lives of the firefighters, he paid off business men to shut down the fire stations. Many of the firefighters are not slow in letting him know what they think of him and his cuts.
There are also two main female characters: Helen McCaffrey (Rebecca De Mornay) and Jennifer Vaitkus (Jennifer Jason Leigh). Helen is Stephen's wife, but at the beginning of the film the couple are separated. Jennifer is Brian's ex-girlfriend and works in the office of Martin Swayzak. Her loyalties are torn between her job with the alderman (who is making financial cuts in the fire service) and Brian who is obviously concerned about the damage that the cuts are doing to the firefighters.
Influences
The Japanese cooking TV show, Iron Chef, used Backdraft's music. The film is the basis of an attraction at Universal Studios Theme Parks where visitors can learn how the pyrotechnic effects were created and experience some of them first hand.
External links
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