Man on Fire (1987 film)

Eleanor Ringel of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution says that Creasy "introduces himself to us in a Sunset Boulevard–style opening."[10]

Desmond Ryan of The Philadelphia Inquirer said that the director "has invested a great deal of care in making Man on Fire visually interesting".[12] John H. Richardson of the Los Angeles Daily News said "One thing you have to say for Man on Fire: If they gave an Oscar for best location scouting, this film should win it. From a palazzo on Lake Como to a huge sun-lit industrial loft to a cavernous underground boat dock, this film has some of the best-looking backgrounds of the year."[11] Caryn James of The New York Times said that the film "is so full of rain it looks like monsoon season on Lake Como, but that makes as much sense as anything else the director and co-writer Elie Chouraqui has imagined."[8] Ryan said that "[t]he settings and camera-work owe much to Ridley Scott and his disciples, but Chouraqui has forgotten that what you hear matters as much as what you see."[12] Ryan added that "[t]he connections from scene to scene are always arbitrary and occasionally incomprehensible, giving Man on Fire the feel of a movie that was drastically edited".[12]

Eleanor Ringel of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said that the director "obviously has an excellent eye for actors but no idea how to use them once he's cast them."[10] Ringel said that the characters Jane Balletto and Michael, played respectively by Brooke Adams and Jonathan Pryce, each are in two scenes and have about four lines of dialog.[10] Michael Spies of the Houston Chronicle said, "As often happens in these international productions, actors make hello-goodbye appearances, including Brooke Adams, who has perhaps one line as the girl's mother, and Jonathan Pryce, who has maybe a couple more as a representative of the family business."[7] James said, "Blink a few times and you'll miss Brooke Adams as Sam's mother, and Danny Aiello as the American ringleader of the Italian terrorists."[8] Sachs said that Adams and Pryce, who were two of the production's top-billed actors, "have approximately five lines between them", and that is "[a] sure giveaway" that the production "has not enjoyed a trouble-free transition."[9] Ryan speculated that the movie may have been severely edited and "what Pryce and his likewise-underutilized co-stars contributed ended up on the cutting-room floor."[12]

Sachs said that Aiello, as Conti, "sounds Italian when he's demanding dough and American when he's begging for his life."[9] In the entire film, Conti has one scene where he speaks.[11] Kaufman said that Aiello, as Conti, "is suitably sinister".[13]

Samantha compares Creasy and herself to the main characters of Of Mice and Men, George Milton and Lenny Small. In regards to Samantha, James stated that "this literary child breaks through Creasy's tough-guy defenses."[8] Sachs said that Samantha is "a survivor in her own right - of a troubled marriage, having no friends, etc." but that she is "too smart and adorable to resist."[9] Richardson said "[t]hey talk about the works of John Steinbeck and the fine points of jogging, and before you can say "Lolita", the pair are involved in a kind of romance."[11] Kaufman said that Malle portrays Sam "with appealing, moppet-like charm".[13]

Ryan said "How - or why - anyone would recruit an actor of the caliber of [Pryce] and then give him just a few lines on the telephone is anyone's guess."[12]

Richardson said that Adams's role is a "cameo."[11]

Bill Kaufman of Newsday said that the "sullen and taciturn" Creasy appears "a bit shaggy" and "doesn't seem much like a tough guy."[13] John H. Richardson of the Los Angeles Daily News said that in the beginning of the film, Creasy is "a morbid guy" who has an appearance "like a thinner Chuck Norris, but he has these huge bags under his eyes and a twitch in his cheek, and he tends to stare off into the distance with the cosmic gloom of someone who has Seen the Darkness in the Human Soul."[11] Kaufman added that the actor, as Creasy, "is a bit reminiscent of Chuck Norris."[11] Eleanor Ringel of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said that the actor as Creasy, "with his scruffy beard and melancholy eyes", "calls to mind Max von Sydow as Christ in The Greatest Story Ever Told.[10]

Caryn James of The New York Times said that compared to other films he starred in, Scott "has less presence than usual here."[8] Ringel concluded that "[e]xcellent actor that he is, he lends power and authority to this disjointed work, but even he can't pull together a script that's heading off in opposite directions. After a while, you figure he took the part because the idea of a paid vacation in Italy was too appealing to pass up."[10] Desmond Ryan of The Philadelphia Inquirer said that while "Glenn is quite capable of livening up humbler movie genres [...] the muddle of pretension and largely incoherent action here is beyond his redemptive powers" and "[a]t least Glenn has been asked to do something, which is more than can be claimed by anyone else in the cast."[12] Kaufman said that Glenn "turns in a creditable performance as the driven man."[13]

When asked in 2015 about playing the part of Creasy, Scott Glenn responded,

I loved doing that part, and I thought that the film itself wound up being really good. I felt good about it. I felt good about my performance, I felt good about everything. And just in terms of comfort and luxury and fun, it was probably the best location I’d ever been on in my life. You know, six weeks at the Villa D’Este on Lake Como, and then a couple of months in Rome. It had a great producer — Arnon Milchan—and Élie Chouraqui, the director — I felt like his take on that character and that story was right on.[16]