Man on Fire (2004)

Directed by

Tony Scott

Genre

drama film, action film, crime film, vigilante film

Country

United States

Runtime

2h 21m

Rated

R

Rating

7.5 of 10 from 5,747 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A depressed former CIA officer becomes a bodyguard for a nine-year-old girl in Mexico City. When she is kidnapped, he goes on a violent revenge spree against those responsible.

tenseviolentgrimemotionalslow-burnbleakgritty

What happens

Man on Fire is a 2004 action thriller film directed and produced by Tony Scott, from a screenplay by Brian Helgeland, and co-produced by Arnon Milchan. It is based on the 1980 novel by A. J. Quinnell. The film stars Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning in lead roles, alongside Christopher Walken, Radha Mitchell, Giancarlo Giannini, Marc Anthony, Rachel Ticotin and Mickey Rourke in supporting roles. The film follows a despondent, alcoholic former CIA officer-turned-bodyguard (Washington), who embarks on a violent revenge spree after a nine-year-old under his charge (Fanning) is kidnapped in Mexico City. This adaptation shifts the setting from Naples, Italy, to Mexico City, diverging from the earlier 1987 film version of Quinnell's novel, which was also produced by Milchan. Man on Fire was released in the United States by 20th Century Fox on April 23, 2004. The film received polarized reviews from critics, but grossed $130.3 million worldwide against a production budget of $60–70 million. Fanning's performances earned her nominations for the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer and the Young Artist Award for Best Leading Young Actress in a Feature Film. Additionally, the film received 2 nominations at the 36th NAACP Image Awards – Outstanding Motion Picture and Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture (Washington).. In 2026, a remake mini-series premiered on Netflix. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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