Firestarter

"Never play with fire."

2022 1h 34m EN

😐

5.4

MID

★5.4TMDB · 843

HorrorScience Fiction

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

For more than a decade, parents Andy and Vicky have been on the run, desperate to hide their daughter Charlie from a shadowy federal agency that wants to harness her unprecedented gift for creating fire into a weapon of mass destruction. Andy has taught Charlie how to defuse her power, which is triggered by anger or pain. But as Charlie turns 11, the fire becomes harder and harder to control. After an incident reveals the family's location, a mysterious operative is deployed to hunt down the family and seize Charlie once and for all. Charlie has other plans.

“Never play with fire.”

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Cast

Ryan Kiera Armstrong
Charlie McGee
Zac Efron
Andy McGee
Sydney Lemmon
Vicky McGee
Kurtwood Smith
Dr. Joseph Wanless
Michael Greyeyes
Rainbird
Gloria Reuben
Captain Hollister
John Beasley
Irv Manders
Tina Jung
Ms. Gardner

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Keith Thomas
Writers: Scott Teems
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Released 4 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Keith Thomas, shot by Karim Hussain. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Cody Carpenter. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Timothy Alverson shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Ryan Kiera Armstrong and Zac Efron and Sydney Lemmon carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Never play with fire.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt1798632 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Keith Thomas directs. Karim Hussain behind the camera. Cody Carpenter scores. Timothy Alverson cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 4 years ago.
2Directed by Keith Thomas, shot by Karim Hussain. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Cody Carpenter. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Timothy Alverson shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Ryan Kiera Armstrong and Zac Efron and Sydney Lemmon carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "Never play with fire.".
7IMDB entry: tt1798632 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 12 themes, including "fire", "based on novel or book", "telepathy", "coming of age".
9Released under 25 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Karim Hussain
Original score: Cody Carpenter
Editing: Timothy Alverson
Production design: Zosia Mackenzie
Costume design: Aline Gilmore
Stunt coordinator: Daryl Patchett
Runtime: 94 min · 1h 34m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $12,000,000
Box office: $15,039,250
Return: 125% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Firestarter (2022)

Also by

Keith Thomas

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-05-29
★ 5/10
He might look good in a white T-shirt but the thing is, as Zac Efron gets older he looks more and more like an automaton. When he was younger, he had a charm about him - now he just looks like his life consists of nothing but the gym, the manscapists and a bath in yesterday's excess kale smoothie mix! Add to that really lacklustre performance some screaming from a competent youngster in Ryan Kiera Armstrong ("Charlie") and we are left with a very mediocre adaptation of this pretty lightweight Stephen King story that is big on pyrotechnic effects, certainly, but on very little else. There is a story: the youngster can cause things to combust at will when she gets stressed or annoyed; her father can bend people to his will making his eyes bleed in the process - quite an effective cure for smokers who want to give up; and her mother - Sidney Lemmon, well she too has a quirk - but I cannot remember what it was (but it definitely wasn't firefighting). Anyway, those who scientifically enhanced this family are hot on their trail - and it's all a question of who will prevail. Well it would be if you were still remotely bothered but after half an hour I just wasn't. For a movie about conflagration - it's sadly all a bit of a damp squib.
JPV8522022-06-18
★ 5/10
Eh, just another pointless remake/re-adaptation, although I don't mind it since the 1984 version wasn't great either. Nothing terrible but not anything special either. Performances were bland and not even the pyrotechnics weren't all that impressive. I guess it's fine to watch for free on Peakcock Premium but even so, you're really not missing anything. 2.25/5
The Movie Mob2022-08-20
★ 5/10
Ironically, this fire never got going—total dud. What? How? I didn't expect to be blown away, but I also didn't expect to be bored. I love Blumhouse flicks, and their fresh take on The Invisible Man had my expectations high for their version of Firestarter. Unfortunately, this was as straight to streaming as a movie could feel. Think Push (2009) but much more mediocre.