Let’s be honest, this one drags a lot when the fire takes hold and it puts much of the drama on pause to document the procedural aspects of fighting such a deadly blaze (and Newman and McQueen roll up their sleeves as the men in charge). That adds a lot of valuable verisimilitude, such that beyond the fashions and decor that are decidedly of the time, this hasn’t dated very much at all. But obviously what’s sacrificed there is spectacle: everything you see on the screen is technically impressive, but not all of it is particularly exciting. They wouldn’t make it like this today, that’s for sure. I’m not certain they’d make it any better, either. ★★★½
Cross-posted from Letterboxd