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"FIREWALL"
(2006) (Harrison Ford, Paul Bettany) (PG-13)

Alcohol/
Drugs
Blood/Gore Disrespectful/
Bad Attitude
Frightening/
Tense Scenes
Guns/
Weapons
Mild Heavy Extreme Heavy Extreme
Imitative
Behavior
Jump
Scenes
Music
(Scary/Tense)
Music
(Inappropriate)
Profanity
Mild Minor Extreme None Heavy
Sex/
Nudity
Smoking Tense Family
Scenes
Topics To
Talk About
Violence
Minor None Heavy Moderate Extreme


QUICK TAKE:
Suspense/Thriller: After a group of high-tech bank robbers takes his family hostage, a security expert must figure out how to save them while outwitting the villains.
PLOT:
Jack Stanfield (HARRISON FORD) is a well-respected security expert at a Seattle-based bank who, along with his bosses Harry Romano (ROBERT FORSTER) and Arlin Forester (ALAN ARKIN), is helping his institution prepare for its takeover by another bank. That merger is being run by the steely Gary Mitchell (ROBERT PATRICK).

When Jack's day starts with helping his assistant, Janet Stone (MARY LYNN RAJSKUB), deal with a coworker who's enamored with her, as well as a visit by a debt collector who seems to have the wrong man, Jack isn't ready for what next occurs. And that's because a businessman he's just met, Bill Cox (PAUL BETTANY), is really the ringleader of a group of high tech bank robbers. Not only does Bill take Jack hostage, but his minions -- Vel (KETT TURTON), Liam (NIKOLAJ COSTER WALDAU), Pim (VINCE VIELUF) and Willy (VINCENT GALE) -- have also done the same to Jack's architect wife Beth (VIRGINIA MADSEN) and their kids, teenager Sarah (CARLY SCHROEDER) and her younger brother Andy (JIMMY BENNETT).

Reuniting the family at their home, Bill informs Jack that as long as he helps them with their heist, they won't hurt his family. Accordingly, Jack must return to work -- wired and watched so that he doesn't try to alert anyone -- and then figure out how to outwit Bill, his team and their seemingly perfect plan.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?
If they're into action-thrillers or are fans of someone in the cast, they might.
WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13
For some intense sequences of violence.
CAST AS ROLE MODELS:
  • HARRISON FORD plays a banking security expert who must try to save his family from Bill and his team while attempting to outwit them and foil their plan. Along the way, he has to break the law and kill some villains in order to pull that off.
  • PAUL BETTANY plays the ringleader of the bank robbery plan that involves kidnapping Jack's family, trying to frame him for the crimes, and killing various people. He also uses strong profanity.
  • VIRGINIA MADSEN plays Jack's architect wife who must put up with having the kidnappers in her house, all while trying to reassure and protect her kids.
  • CARLY SCHROEDER plays Jack and Beth's teenager daughter who's terrified by what's occurring.
  • JIMMY BENNETT plays her younger brother who's also scared, but briefly takes something of a liking to the charismatic Bill.
  • MARY LYNN RAJSKUB plays Jack's workplace assistance who's confused by his behavior but eventually comes around to help him and his plan.
  • ROBERT FORSTER plays Jack's immediate boss who uses a bit of profanity.
  • ROBERT PATRICK plays the merger acquisition leader who's overseeing the takeover of Jack's bank. He becomes suspicious of Jack as he begins to act in unorthodox ways.
  • ALAN ARKIN plays the big boss at Jack's bank.
  • VINCE VIELUF plays a volatile member of Bill's team.
  • VINCENT GALE plays the team member assigned to tail and observe Jack's actions.
  • KETT TURTON and NIKOLAJ COSTER WALDAU play other members of the team who abduct Beth and her kids and hold them hostage.
  • CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

    HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE


    Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit?
    Then read OUR TAKE of this film.


    (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).


    OUR WORD TO PARENTS:
    The following is a brief summary of the content found in this suspense/thriller that's been rated PG-13. Profanity consists of at least 1 "f" word, while other expletives and colorful phrases are also uttered, as is one line of non-explicit, sexually related dialogue. Violence includes various people being killed by various means, sometimes with rather bloody results. Fighting leading up to that is also present, as is threatening of people by holding guns to their heads. Those scenes and other moments of potential peril may be unsettling or suspenseful to some viewers, while the perpetrators obviously have bad attitudes for their actions and plans.

    The central parents worry about each other and their kids during the hostage situation, while a little bit of drinking is present. Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content.

    For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, from time to time, there's camera movement that may induce such a reaction in some viewers.


    ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE
  • We see Jack, Harry and Bill having drinks (before they know of Bill's plan), but Jack leaves to get home to his family (others in the bar or restaurant also drink).
  • Bill asks Jack if he has any wine, with Jack replying there's some in the bar. Bill then tells one of his men to get him a bottle, but the subordinate replies "I don't know sh*t about wine."
  • Harry offers a beer to Bill who at first declines and then accepts (but he never has any).
  • BLOOD/GORE
  • The kids watch a horror film on TV where what look like maggots (or something similar) spill out of a character's mouth (briefly seen).
  • Bill shoots one of his own men in the back for failing at a task (we don't see the point blank impact, but do see a small pool of blood on the floor next to the dead man).
  • Beth has some bruises on her arm from earlier being manhandled.
  • Gary has a little bit of blood on his head after a physical encounter with Jack.
  • One of the guys pushes Jack back against a wall, with Jack then pushing him down to the floor. He then hits that man on the head with a glass coffee pot and then a blender, with the man wildly firing his machine gun as this occurs (Jack is not hit). The man's eye and then face are very bloody from that attack and it's implied that Jack has killed him.
  • Bill shoots a man in the back of the head or just the back, killing him (we don't see the actual impact). We then see some blood on the dead man.
  • Beth has some blood on her face after being hit.
  • Both Jack and Bill have bloody faces during a fight.
  • DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE
  • Bill and his team have bad attitudes for their actions and plans (kidnapping Jack and his family, trying to rob his bank, and with Bill killing various people, etc.).
  • A debt collector calls a woman (in a sexist manner) "Sweetheart."
  • Bill tells Beth that if she and Jack don't cooperate with them, he'll kill her and her kids.
  • Bill lies to Andy about there not being any nuts in some cookies he offers the boy. Moments later, we see the boy having a bad allergic reaction (trouble breathing), with Bill withholding the epinephrine shot until Jack agrees to comply with his demands.
  • We're led to believe that a banker is in cahoots with Bill and his crew, but we later learn that's not true.
  • FRIGHTENING SCENES
  • Scenes listed under "Violence" may also be unsettling or suspenseful to younger viewers and/or those with low tolerance levels for such material.
  • Bill suddenly gets into the backseat of Jack's car and holds a handgun on him.
  • We see that the kidnappers have Beth and her kids bound and gagged.
  • Bill tells Beth that if she and Jack don't cooperate with them, he'll kill her and her kids.
  • After Jack has disobeyed his order, Bill tells Liam on the phone to take the boy downstairs and break his knee. We then hear screaming through the phone but Bill calls off the breakage when Jack complies.
  • When the phone rings at home, Andy answers it, with one of the men tackling him to the floor. Beth tries to intervene, but a man hits her, while Sarah is grabbed by the throat and has a gun held to her head (to make Beth back off).
  • To create a diversion, Jack breaks a window with a fire extinguisher and then fires its spray at the men as they come at him. One punches Jack several times, kicks him and then throws him into a chair. While that's occurring, Beth and the kids are trying to escape through the garage. They get to the car and get in, with Beth knocking down one guy with the car door, but Bill then aims his gun at her through the car window and she gives up (with the men then dragging her and the kids back into the house).
  • The kids spot a dead body wrapped in plastic in the backseat of their car.
  • Bill lies to Andy about there not being any nuts in some cookies he offers the boy. Moments later, we see the boy having a bad allergic reaction (trouble breathing), with Bill withholding the epinephrine shot until Jack agrees to comply with his demands.
  • A man holds his gun to Beth's head to make her say something on the phone.
  • Jack tries to divert Arlin and Gary in the data room as Bill monitors the recording of a transaction. Later, Jack tries to get away from Gary who chases after him, eventually blocking his exit in a car. Jack then gets out and Gary throws him to the windshield, with Jack then knocking Gary to the parking garage floor before fleeing in his car and driving through a wooden gate arm.
  • One of the guys pushes Jack back against a wall, with Jack then pushing him down to the floor. He then hits that man on the head with a glass coffee pot and then a blender, with the man wildly firing his machine gun as this occurs (Jack is not hit). The man's eye and then face are very bloody from that attack and it's implied that Jack has killed him.
  • Jack crawls along the edge of a room and then down onto a balcony at night in the rain (to get inside Harry's place).
  • Jack realizes that Bill and his team are not only setting him up for the bank robbery, but also murder.
  • Bill holds his handgun to Beth's head. One of his cronies then throws her into a van.
  • One of the guys removes the family dog from the van (where Beth and the kids are held hostage), greatly upsetting Andy.
  • Sarah escapes and tries to hide in a shed as one of the armed guys comes looking for her.
  • One of the guys shoots at Jack who drives his car into that man, killing him. The car then crashes in a shed, explodes and catches on fire, with Jack having to get out before he's burned alive.
  • Jack crashes through a window and jumps on Bill, with both tumbling down some stairs. Bill then hits and kicks Jack, with Jack then returning the blows to him. This continues (with severe blows as well as Bill wildly firing a machine gun with the bullets going through the ceiling, sending Beth and Andy scrambling for cover on the floor above them) until Bill knocks Jack out through a window and into a ditch where he jumps on his back.
  • Jack struggles with a villain before elbowing him so that he can grab a pickax that he slams into the villain's back, killing him.
  • GUNS/WEAPONS
  • Handguns/Machine guns: Carried and/or used to threaten or kill others. See "Violence" for details.
  • In some footage from the movie "Forbidden Planet" (on the TV), we see men firing 1950s style laser guns.
  • IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR
  • Phrases: "Then you have a big f*cking problem," "I don't know sh*t about wine," "Pack up your sh*t," "Bullsh*t," "Quit d*cking me around," "Screwing up," "Idiot," "Sweetheart" (said by a man to a woman in a sexist fashion), "Pain in the ass," "Morons," "Shut up," "Shut your G*ddamn mouth," "What the hell /happened?" "Screw you," "One hell of a mess," "Are you nuts?" "Where the hell is he?" "Give me a break," "Change of plans, asshole," "I don't give a rat's ass" and "Sit your ass down."
  • Willy gives "the finger" to Jack while following him in a van.
  • JUMP SCENES
  • Bill suddenly gets into the backseat of Jack's car and holds a handgun on him.
  • The kids spot a dead body wrapped in plastic in the backseat of their car.
  • MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE)
  • An extreme amount of suspenseful and ominous music plays in the film.
  • MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE)
  • None.
  • PROFANITY
  • At least 1 "f" word, 11 "s" words, 1 slang term using male genitals ("d*cking"), 5 hells, 4 asses (1 used with "hole"), 2 damns, 6 uses of "Jesus," 4 of "G-damn," 2 each of "God" and "Oh God" and 1 use each of "For God's sakes," "Oh my God" and "Swear to God" as exclamations.
  • SEX/NUDITY
  • Jack mentions part of Bill's plan is to make it look like someone is sleeping with his wife.
  • SMOKING
  • None.
  • TENSE FAMILY SCENES
  • Jack and Beth worry about each other and their kids during the ordeal.
  • Bill tells Beth that if she and Jack don't cooperate with them, he'll kill her and her kids.
  • After Jack has disobeyed his order, Bill tells Liam on the phone to take the boy downstairs and break his knee. We then hear screaming through the phone but Bill calls it off when Jack complies.
  • Bill lies to Andy about there not being any nuts in some cookies he offers the boy. Moments later, we see the boy having a bad allergic reaction (trouble breathing), with Bill withholding the epinephrine shot until Jack agrees to comply with his demands.
  • Jack returns home to find that his family is now missing.
  • Jack hears a phone message from Beth on Harry's answering machine where she states her love for Harry, but Jack seems to know something is up with that (related to what's been occurring).
  • TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT
  • How the state of money has changed (from hard currency to electronic data).
  • Seeing the bank's data (computer) room, Bill states, "This is the real vault."
  • High tech crimes.
  • How you'd react if faced with the same situation.
  • VIOLENCE
  • One of the guys pushes Beth back against the wall and then ties her up, while another grabs Sarah and another grabs Andy and pins the boy's arm behind his back and his body to the floor while subduing him.
  • One of the men hits Jack on the head with his gun (for lying).
  • When the phone rings at home, Andy answers it, with one of the men tackling him to the floor. Beth tries to intervene, but a man hits her, while Sarah is grabbed by the throat and has a gun held to her head (to make Beth back off).
  • Bill shoots one of his own men in the back for failing at a task (we don't see the point blank impact, but do see a small pool of blood on the floor next to the dead man).
  • To create a diversion, Jack breaks a window with a fire extinguisher and then fires its spray at the men as they come at him. One punches Jack several times, kicks him and then throws him into a chair. While that's occurring, Beth and the kids are trying to escape through the garage. They get to the car and get in, with Beth knocking down one guy with the car door, but Bill then aims his gun at her through the car window and she gives up (with the men then dragging her and the kids back into the house).
  • Jack tries to get away from Gary who chases after him, eventually blocking his exit in a car. Jack then gets out and Gary throws him to the windshield, with Jack then knocking Gary to the parking garage floor before fleeing in his car and driving through a wooden gate arm.
  • One of the guys pushes Jack back against a wall, with Jack then pushing him down to the floor. He then hits that man on the head with a glass coffee pot and then a blender, with the man wildly firing his machine gun as this occurs (Jack is not hit). The man's eye and then face are very bloody from that attack and it's implied that Jack has killed him.
  • Bill shoots a man in the back of the head or just the back, killing him (we don't see the actual impact). We then see some blood on the dead man.
  • Jack tries to force his way into Janet's place (for help), but she smashes his hand in the door before he forces that open. He then grabs and controls her, calming her down to tell her what's happened.
  • Bill holds his handgun to Beth's head. One of his cronies then throws her into a van.
  • Bill punches Beth, causing one of his men to try to come to her rescue. Bill then head-butts and shoots that man dead (no impact).
  • One of the guys shoots at Jack who drives his car into that man, killing him. The car then crashes in a shed, explodes and catches on fire, with Jack having to get out before he's burned alive.
  • Jack crashes through a window and jumps on Bill, with both tumbling down some stairs. Bill then hits and kicks Jack, with Jack then returning the blows to him. This continues (with severe blows as Bill wildly fires a machine gun where the bullets go through the ceiling, sending Beth and Andy scrambling for cover on the floor above them) until Bill knocks Jack out through a window and into a ditch where he jumps on his back.
  • Jack struggles with a villain before elbowing him so that he can grab a pickax that he slams into the villain's back, killing him.



  • Reviewed January 23, 2006 / Posted February 10, 2006

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