Skyscraper

Truly a B-movie version of The Towering Inferno inspired by Die Hard. It just doesn't follow the rules (let alone match the quality) of either of those films. Not even remotely. The filmmakers even go against the basic cornerstone of such movies, in which the main character must be someone convincing, “an ordinary person" à la Harrison Ford (among others) in the nineties. In other words, who is the most suitable person to do the job than the only living superman whose acting tries to give the impression of an average father and family man. Not only does this flirt with consciously being a guilty pleasure, but it never fully accepts this aspect. Its advantage is that with it's stupid, straightforward and eye-catching CGI, the viewer tends to press the buttons on the remote control with their thumb during the jumping scenes, so it's undeniably fun... Well, no, rather it's not boring, not for a moment, which is actually the best possible testimonial for this average consumer nonsense along the lines of “turn off your brain and watch it once." (02/09/2020)

A seamless action flick that I was happy to forgive. In fact, Skyscraper had the same effect on me as some of the (now so-called classic) Schwarzenegger or Stallone movies – they weren't always masterpieces, but those two gentlemen were the reason I enjoyed watching them every time, and the reason I enjoyed those movies. Dwayne Johnson is cut from the same cloth this time around. He's charismatic, tough, you root for him even when you know everything is going to turn out well; you have fun. I especially appreciate that after crap like Jumanji, Rampage, and San Andreas, Johnson is in something that isn't completely goofy or parodic, but that takes itself seriously within the genre of expensive B-movies, and only occasionally lightens things up with humor. Plus, there's the cool idea of the protagonist having a prosthetic leg, which he makes use of a lot, and the crane scene, for example, is so over the top it's excellent (Jablonsky's music stands out during this one, as it does elsewhere as well; though simple and routine, it adds atmosphere). I wasn't expecting much and I am satisfied. (15/08/2020)

Unfortunately, this movie doesn't even come close to the classics of this genre, such as Towering Inferno with Paul Newman and Steve McQueen, or Die Hard with Bruce Willis. The story itself is incredibly stupid and predictable, so I must focus more on the visual side, which the filmmakers did quite well. We can say that it is a kind of unpretentious action movie, with occasional suspenseful scenes here and there. (50%) (19/03/2023)

The Rock is trying to save his family in the midst of a fire in the biggest skyscraper in the world, and a group of terrorists are in his way. The movie is much more The Towering Inferno than Die Hard, which bummed me out a bit, but you can never have too many disaster movies. It may be silly, but that jump off the crane scene is one of the best the film has to offer, even at the cost of being very over the top, but it's a movie, so why not. It keeps the pace, there's no shortage of tension, there are a few fights, The Rock has incredible charisma, and visually it's just okay. As a summer blockbuster, it meets the criteria and I enjoyed it. 70% (16/07/2018)

Very silly, but very entertaining. There’s something happening all the time. The Towering Inferno crossed not only with Die Hard but also with Mission Impossible, with the only difference that, where Tom Cruise had sticky gloves, the muscle-bound Rock uses Scotch Tape and a curtain drawstring. Skyscraper is simply a solid popcorn movie that doesn’t require you to think very much. I awarded it a fourth star for the visual aspect and the amazing aerial shots. (17/12/2018)