Reign of Fire (2002)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Rob Bowman

Writers (WGA):

Gregg Chabot (story) &
Kevin Peterka (story) ...

Release Date:

12 July 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Fantasy | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Fight Fire With Fire

Plot:

A brood of fire-breathing dragons emerges from the earth and begins setting fire to everything, establishing dominance over the planet.

Plot Keywords:

Dragon | Fire Breathing Dragon | Fire | London | Post Apocalyptic

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Christian Bale	...	Quinn Abercromby
Matthew McConaughey	...	Denton Van Zan
Izabella Scorupco	...	Alex Jensen
Gerard Butler	...	Creedy
Scott Moutter	...	Jared Wilke (as Scott James Moutter)
David Kennedy	...	Eddie Stax
Alexander Siddig	...	Ajay
Ned Dennehy	...	Barlow
Rory Keenan	...	Devon
Terence Maynard	...	Gideon
Doug Cockle	...	Goosh
Randall Carlton	...	Burke (Tito)
Chris Kelly	...	Mead
Ben Thornton	...	Young Quinn
Alice Krige	...	Karen Abercromby

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for intense action violence.

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

UK | Ireland | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Netherlands:12 | Malaysia:U | Iceland:12 | South Korea:12 | New Zealand:M | USA:PG-13 (certificate #39148) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Denmark:11 | Finland:K-11 | France:U | Germany:12 | Japan:R | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of the Grisons) | UK:12 | Canada:PG

Filming Locations:

Ardmore Studios - Herbert Road, Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland

Company:

Spyglass Entertainment

Trivia:

The method by which the dragons expel fire was inspired by two actual animals; the spitting cobra and bombardier beetle.

Goofs:

Plot holes: Van Sant and Alex tell Quinn that there is only one male dragon and, like fish, the females lay their eggs and the male makes a "pass" to fertilize them. Yet when Quinn discovers the egg inside the downed dragon, there is an embryo visible, which should only happen AFTER fertilization.

Quotes:

Denton Van Zan 'Dragon Slayer': [to Quinn in the castle] I lead, You follow.
Denton Van Zan 'Dragon Slayer': [to Quinn in London] You lead, I follow.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Troldspejlet: (#29.11)" (2003)

Soundtrack:

Fire

Pretty Straightforward Stuff

This was a bit different than one expected. There was no nonsense, no tongue-in-cheek humor or special-effects just for the sake of it: this was simply a humans vs. dragons story taking place in the future. No laughs and nothing hokey, which is what I expected. They played it straight, simply as a fight story between the two parties.

Yes, there were credibility problems with the story but overall, it was good escapist adventure. The dragons were realistic-looking, the scenery dreary but the story interesting and intense in spots.

I wouldn't buy it, but I would definitely recommend it if you are looking for a night of adventure on film. You could do a whole lot worse, especially with two young actors who have arrived as stars: Christian Bale and Matthew McConnaughey.