Man on Fire
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation | Release Date: April 23, 2004 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
47
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 36 Critic Reviews
Positive:
11
Mixed:
17
Negative:
8
Watch Now
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
Man on Fire, with a best-ever Denzel Washington, is the first (nonreligious) sure thing to hit the multiplex this year. Read full review
80
EmpireIan Freer
By no means perfect - a twist in the tale overextends its already lengthy running time - but it is terrific fun. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
For what Man on Fire delivers, it's worth enduring Scott's hyperkinetic visual techniques. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
It's resolutely grim and rather predictable but very compelling, and it offers a commanding star vehicle for Denzel Washington. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
The dead-serious Man on Fire awakens a genuine sense of bloodlust in the viewer. This is a slick, big-budget, A-list production designed to stoke our basest impulses -- to make us long for, and cheer at, bloody, merciless vengeance. Read full review
70
SlateDavid Edelstein
No one rises above the material, though, except for Walken, who looks pleased with the paycheck and the top-shelf tequila. As a shady lawyer, Mickey Rourke is smooth and funny, but recognizable only by his familiar purr. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderAndrea Gronvall
Washington's stoic persona here conceals a volcanic rage, and the cast of pros--including Giancarlo Giannini, Mickey Rourke and Rachel Ticotin--support him with relish. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
Ultimately more bleak and furious than most Hollywood tales of this sort. Man on Fire plays it out to the bloody end, like there’s no fire extinguisher in Mexico but for the oceans that hold its borders. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
Man on Fire, which starts off as a good example of super-glitz moviemaking, gradually turns into a movie on fire -- another helter-skelter, big-studio spending spree. Too bad. It could use a lot more of Walken, Fanning and some more honest drama. Read full review
63
USA TodayMike Clark
Not too many R-rated revenge pics depend on "Uptown Girls'" Dakota Fanning for the stronger scenes. Yet once the 10-year-old star exits the picture, Man on Fire starts blowing a lot of smoke. Read full review
63
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Employs superb craftsmanship and a powerful Denzel Washington performance in an attempt to elevate genre material above its natural level, but it fails. The underlying story isn't worth the effort. Read full review
More From This Movie

47 Critic Reviews

8.5 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 77 Project Hail Mary
2 75 Send Help
3 73 Hoppers
4 71 The Sheep Detectives
5 68 Crime 101
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL