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Backdraft

Play trailer Poster for Backdraft R 1991 2h 17m Mystery & Thriller Drama Action Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
72% Tomatometer 65 Reviews 75% Popcornmeter 100,000+ Ratings
Chicago firefighting brothers Stephen (Kurt Russell) and Brian (William Baldwin) have been rivals since childhood. Brian, struggling to prove himself, transfers to the arson unit. There he aids Don (Robert De Niro) in his investigation into a spate of fires involving oxygen-induced infernos called backdrafts. But when a conspiracy implicating a crooked politician and an arsonist leads Brian back to Stephen, he is forced to overcome his brotherly competitiveness in order to crack the case.
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Backdraft

Backdraft

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Critics Consensus

It's not particularly deep, but Backdraft is a strong action movie with exceptional special effects.

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Critics Reviews

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Steve Murray Atlanta Journal-Constitution Sep 23
"Backdraft" has boffo special effects but a B-movie script. Go to Full Review
Julie Salamon Wall Street Journal 08/10/2022
[Howard] gives the fire fighting scenes a satisfying feel of terror. But the psychological portraits of the fire fighters and the arson mystery that dominate the film are flimsy, like an art student's dutifully crafted reproductions of the great masters. Go to Full Review
Bob Fenster Arizona Republic 08/03/2021
4/5
Although the movie is unrealistic in its depiction of fircfighting, it's a stunning piece of cinematic storytelling. Go to Full Review
Matt Brunson Film Frenzy 11/19/2023
2/4
A hoary melodrama in which the clichés are more plentiful than the flames. Go to Full Review
Akos Peterbencze Vulnerable Man (Medium) 07/21/2023
Backdraft is an old-school flick filled with masculinity and heroism, which might feel toxic and over-the-top at times, but it’s still satisfying. Go to Full Review
Robert Julian Bay Area Reporter 03/02/2023
In Universal's Backdraft, Ron Howard establishes that he can get the best actors in Hollywood to do work completely beneath their talents. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Cody W. @Cwalton1994 Oct 5 Overall, BACKDRAFT is an intense and emotional thriller that bravely captures the dedication and sacrifice of these incredible firefighters in a heartbeat. See more Romas M Sep 3 Greetings from Lithuania. "Backdraft" (1991) is a very solid film. The all star cast here works for good - while on paper this movies plot shouldn't have worked. Great director Ron Howard brought a life to this film - every scene here just pulses and this movie never gets boring. Clearly "Backdraft" is one of those films that were not meant for critics but rather for general audiences. Special effects involving fire still looks great, and sound design is terrific here. But its acting and directing of this material makes this movie work and combining with terrific production values makes this film work. Overall, "Backdraft" is a good movie. Great actors did great work, production values are good and directing by Ron Howard is excellent. Not a great film, but a good guilty pleasure film. See more thiago s @Thiagostone Jun 28 Filme mais ou menos, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são mais ou menos, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom See more Jason M D 07/25/2024 Backdraft is a great action movie with a great cast the story and plot for Backdraft is great it has aged very well and still holds up 33 years later i am doing this review Becaues I found out that there is a reboot in the works See more Blu B 06/06/2024 It's a classic 90's popcorn flick. The highlight is the production value/cinematography which is really good. The camerawork is first class, the special effects are amazing, and so are the set designs for the fire scenes. They truly grab you by the edge of your seat and are the highlight. The music is really good also but I do wish it was a bit more catchy on it's own. Everything else is solid about this overall. Where this starts to buckle is when it tries (and works enough) merging the melodrama with Baldwin and Russell with the Arson plotline. It becomes very clunky at times and jumps around a bit. It really helps that it's directed and acted well. Russell is really good and the best thing in this. Glenn, Baldwin, and DeNiro are solid as well. Everyone else is just kind of ok and very forgettable including the love interest who feels hammed in. The plot twist is kind of farfetched but works just enough where i'll buy it. when it focuses on Baldwin growing and becoming a firemen and the tension with his brother is when this is at it's best mixed with the fire action. The love interests, the backstory with his Dad/killer, and the complex arson plot/plot twist really gives this a bloated feel at times especially as this goes on. But it 's acted well, got great production and special effects, and the drama that does work carries this. The arson subplot does start out interesting also but again the payoff isn't as strong. It's still a solid flick thanks to Howards direction as well. Anyone who is a fan of any actors in this, the director, fire movies, or 90's popcorn flicks will like this. See more Lane W 04/02/2024 I really well, done movie in my opinion Curt Russell at his best. I would highly recommend this movie to anybody that loves firefighting or kurt Russell. See more Read all reviews
Backdraft

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Backdraft

Backdraft: Official Clip - Stephen's Final Words Backdraft: Official Clip - Stephen's Final Words 2:19 Backdraft: Official Clip - Swayzak Is Served Backdraft: Official Clip - Swayzak Is Served 0:55 Backdraft: Official Clip - That's My Brother Backdraft: Official Clip - That's My Brother 2:32 Backdraft: Official Clip - You Go, We Go Backdraft: Official Clip - You Go, We Go 2:18 Backdraft: Official Clip - Tim and the Backdraft Backdraft: Official Clip - Tim and the Backdraft 2:17 Backdraft: Official Clip - Ronald's Parole Hearing Backdraft: Official Clip - Ronald's Parole Hearing 1:52 Backdraft: Official Clip - Stephen the Hero Backdraft: Official Clip - Stephen the Hero 2:09 Backdraft: Official Clip - Catching the Arsonist Backdraft: Official Clip - Catching the Arsonist 2:04 Backdraft: Official Clip - Who Doesn't Love Fire? Backdraft: Official Clip - Who Doesn't Love Fire? 2:59 Backdraft: Official Clip - Fire Is a Living Thing Backdraft: Official Clip - Fire Is a Living Thing 2:07 View more videos
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Movie Info

Synopsis Chicago firefighting brothers Stephen (Kurt Russell) and Brian (William Baldwin) have been rivals since childhood. Brian, struggling to prove himself, transfers to the arson unit. There he aids Don (Robert De Niro) in his investigation into a spate of fires involving oxygen-induced infernos called backdrafts. But when a conspiracy implicating a crooked politician and an arsonist leads Brian back to Stephen, he is forced to overcome his brotherly competitiveness in order to crack the case.
Director
Ron Howard
Producer
Pen Densham, Richard B. Lewis, John Watson
Screenwriter
Gregory Widen
Distributor
Universal Pictures
Production Co
Universal Pictures, Trilogy Entertainment Group, Imagine Entertainment
Rating
R
Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Drama, Action
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 24, 1991, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 19, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$75.7M
Runtime
2h 17m
Sound Mix
Surround, DTS, Dolby, Magnetic Stereo 6 Track
Aspect Ratio
35mm, Scope (2.35:1)
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