And it keeps the film being more about the people than effects (a lot of modern films suffer from too much effects, not enough plot or character development). I also think that because they didn't have modern CGI and couldn't make the special effects more easily, the effects are not merely gratuitous or overdone and serve their purpose well. That being said, The Towering Inferno does not suffer from modern CGI effects and the flames are REAL so it is impressive, especially for the time. I think certain actors really stand - in this film, it's Paul Newman and Faye Dunaway.ĥ) All the same, expect 1970's acting and filming and quality of special effects. But the 2.5 hour film does give ample time to all the actors. While it is neat seeing all the celebrities, especially watching them now and seeing how young they were at the time, it also makes it harder to buy into a film's plot. The Blu-rays look noticeably superior.ģ) Also, the individual Blu-rays have bonus features, while the 4-film collection I bought on DVD did not have any bonus features.Ĥ) The Towering Inferno, like all of the films listed above (except for Rollercoaster), have celebrity filled casts. Even if it crushed his thigh it would not have killed him so quickly. As the bartender slumps dead you can see a wide open gap between his whole upper body and the statue. It barely touches his chest and rests on his left thigh. The DVD's are also in widescreen but the image quality isn't that much better than a good VHS on the DVD's. Revealing mistake: Watch carefully as the statue falls on the bartender. To be honest, after reading so many positive reviews about the others, I was expecting more from them.Ģ) All these films are available on Blu-ray and it's definitely worth buying the Blu-rays over the DVD's. The Poseidon Adventure is the only one of these that I actually remember seeing when I was younger and IMO The Poseidon Adventure was the best (5 star rating) - Towering Inferno was next (4 stars), followed by Rollercoaster / Hindenburg / Airport (3 star), and the weakest was Earthquake (2 stars). 1) I recently picked up several 1970's disaster films - The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno separately on Blu-ray, and a 2-DVD, 4-film collection with Earthquake, Rollercoaster, The Hindenburg, and Airport.

The towering inferno movie cast