The Towering Inferno (1974). What a Disaster (movie)

#disastermovie
Stam Fine Reviews looks at a movie that always seemed to be on TV, but on a school night so we never saw it properly until now. Producer Irwin Allen (Lost in Space) follows up his 1972 hit The Poseidon Adventure with a movie that became the biggest disaster movie hot of the decade.
A new skyscraper full of Hollywood stars catches fire. Hijinks ensue. Towering Inferno is a Toasty Thriller starring the likes of Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, and more.

[dumbcat]

I lived through this period as a kid. The Poseidon Adventure (1972) made us afraid of the ocean. The Towering Inferno (1974) made us afraid of buildings. Earthquake (1974) made us afraid of the ground. Smash-Up on Interstate 5 (1976) made us afraid of roads. Airport 77 (1977) made us afraid of the air. The Car (1977) made us afraid to ride our bicycles. And Jaws knock-off Grizzly (1976) made us afraid to play in our own back yards! Ah the 70's.

[DennisAlexis]

One of my favourite movies. Saw it the first time on TV as a kid in the early 90s. The Maureen Maureen McGovern song is so beautiful and always gives me chills.

[mrtunapie]

I saw this movie with a friend in a theater when it came out. We both loved it. It's still a favorite and I have it now on Blu-ray.

[TheRadioAteMyTV]

Those closing lines of the film have haunted me ever since 9-11 and the fall of the Twin Towers. I kept thinking of the movie while watching people jump and fall from the Twin Towers, thinking, the movie was right, there is no way to save them. And there wasn't, and then unlike the movie, most of them all died.

[robertwalegir]

Great movie, all star cast and kept you on the edge of your seat at the time, extremely inventive and realistic

[drewski]

One of the most badass movies I’ve ever seen still keeps me on the edge as to what comes next great all star cast 70s movies definitely rocked

[itslikethesamebutdifferent]

This is my favorite move ever. The acting as you say wasn’t over the top but that is exactly what i love about it. At times you can forget that you’re seeing a film and think the dialogue sound like real people in the middle of a tragic event. Another aspect of this movie i enjoyed is how useful information about how to fight a fire or how to try and survive a fire are sprinkled throughout the film in a semi subtle way. Love this film and the list of celebrities is mind boggling, it’s a who’s who of Hollywood royalty. I was actually watching this film a few days ago, it still stands head and shoulders above the rest for me.

[Mark-nhhs]

I saw this film quite recently on TV and it's still enjoyable as seeing as a kid on TV in the late 80s - where it scared the crap out of me esp when the woman falls from the window. Classic film. Love the slow build up and dismissing the small fire then the crap hits the fan love the tension. Plus has two of three of my fears - being stuck at a great height and being burnt by fire.

[tomlavelle]

TTI and Earthquake were my go-to disaster movies of my childhood!😁😁

[Therealjimmygalaxy]

I enjoyed this video so much I watch it every time I watch Towering Inferno

[davidsullivan]

I loved the disaster movies. The Poseidon Adventure was my ultimate favourite film as a kid but The Towering Inferno is up there with it. Earthquake was alright but that blood splat with the lift scene kills me.

[MarkOates-fqqq]

I think the death of Lorrie (Susan Flannery), Robert Wagner's secretary, is the most horrific for me. Caught by backdraft and blown out of the building. Her fall was carried out by (IIRC) stuntwoman Paula Crist, who was a regular on the Planet Of The Apes fandom circuit. She also doubled Jessica Lange jumping off the Wall in King Kong (1976). Remarkably, although dozens of fire stunts were carried out filming the movie, no injuries are recorded as having taken place.

When it was shown with Earthquake, exhibitors promoted the two movies as the "Shake and Bake Double Feature".

[lonwolf]

This was my jam growing up in 1970's!!! First THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE and then THE TOWERING INFERNO. What was it about destruction that tickled this teenager's fancy??? Then when EARTHQUAKE came out I almost lost my mind!!!!

[playnamz]

I watched The Towering Inferno, then titled in Korean as just "Towering", as a 6th grader and the image of the woman falling out of the flaming skyscraper was forever ingrained in my memory as tragic and dramatic. I remember the heroics of the main character and overall memorable cinematic experience that I googled, found out the actual title, and came onto this video 35 years later. Now going to find out where it streams and watch it with my wife & son!

[darrenrunning]

If I remember correctly, the Towering Inferno was based off of two novels released at about the same time, The Glass Inferno and The Tower. The script took elements of both novels and combined them. In one novel the fire starts with a faulty electrical system and in the other, a disgruntled worker sets off a firebomb. One novel is set in the midwest, the other the East Coast. It's implied that the building on the East Coast is a stand in for the recently completed World Trade Center. In one novel, the fire is put out by blowing up the water tanks above the fire, in the other, the firemen can't do anything to save the people on the top floor and they all die before the fire burns itself out.

[XYZ_Vu]

One of my favorite old school 70s disaster pix

[VictoriaRamos-ljee]

The whole Richard Chamberlin "chair drop fall" aka clowning his char is to funny.... Good movie all joking aside i love old 70s disaster movie due to the huge cast. It's just like classic war movies like the longest day with a huge hit of well-known chars. Now days most of these actors and actresses are gone so its all we have of them and the roles they did.

[AndrewLoukidis-jrbp]

We saw all these classic disaster films by Irwin Allen, the master of disaster
This one gave me nightmares for a week, I slept on the couch downstairs

[clydesalley]

About the third or fourth time I watched Richard Chamberlain fall, I was laughing pretty hard.

[northernlights]

A terrific film.I saw it when it came out and went back to see it a second time.Packed cinema both times.