Skyscraper (2018)

★★½
Like The Towering Inferno but without the crowded room of famous actors, Skyscraper does what you would expect it to do given the premise of a burning high rise and the presence of Dwayne Johnson. It's the kind of movie Sylvester Stallone would have made if this idea had been brought to him in the '80s. With a building falling apart around him and hindered by animated fire that is far from being perfected, Johnson barrels through the action with his signature gruffy tough-guy personality, but this time he has family placed at risk, which gives him the opportunity to show a softer side that works and is a welcome change of pace for the actor. A few surprises here and there keep the interest level high. For once, a Dwayne Johnson character is vulnerable and could fail. Late in the movie he realizes he no longer controls his destiny, and this results in a tender moment with his daughter to assure her of his love for her. The rest of the movie, though, feels like a retread of better action movies.

Will Sawyer (Johnson) is a former Hostage Rescue Team member whose last mission ends in failure after a bomb kills the hostages and blows off his left leg below the knee. In the years following this tragedy, Sawyer has become a consultant for high rise security systems. He also married the attending physician when he was brought to the hospital. Sarah Sawyer (Neve Campbell) accompanies Will to Hong Kong with their two children for his latest assignment, which is to review security for the world's tallest skyscraper, The Pearl. Building owner Zhao Long Ji (Chin Han) introduces Will to this architectural marvel, which includes a spectacular view of the Hong Kong skyline and a room full of television panels that emerge from the floor to create a hall of mirrors. Veterans of this genre know that this room will figure into the movie's climax.

Will's colleague Ben (Pablo Schreiber) is on hand to welcome the Sawyers to Hong Kong and send the wife and kids off for the day to see panda bears. Will and Ben travel to an off-site security control center to continue their evaluation when a thief steals Will's bag. The thief was after a tablet given to Will by Zhao that controls the security features of The Pearl, including its state-of-the-art fire suppression system. Will actually had the tablet on him, but this attempt at theft is the beginning of an elaborate siege on The Pearl by a group of terrorists that is after its secrets, with Zhao a prisoner in his own creation. To make matters worse, Will's family returned early and is trapped in the upper floors when the terrorists start a fire that will work its way up over the course of the movie. Will's goal is to navigate each perilous floor of increasing intensity to save his family and discover Zhao's secret that made him a target for the attack. At the same time, he must stay one step ahead of the Hong Kong Police, which thinks he's the one responsible for starting the fire.

Skyscraper is wall-to-wall with stunts and death-defying escapes. Like Die Hard's John McClane, Will Sawyer makes good use of available resources in his fight against overwhelming odds. The fire effects are plentiful, though unfortunately this is the movie's biggest weakness. C.G.I. fires are easier to control than actual fires, but gone are the days when movies like Backdraft created suspense with their use of practical effects. Among the film's strengths is Neve Campbell's Sarah, who is integral to the plot and isn’t present just to be rescued. Once the misunderstanding with the Hong Kong Police is cleared up, Sarah become an invaluable resource to understanding the situation inside the building. I also applaud the handling of the Sawyer children. Children-in-peril is a reliable if overused element for these kinds of movies, but the writers sensibly avoided some of the usual expectations for how the kids would be presented. Will's focus is divided between his family's safety and his determination to stop the terrorists. The two plot threads intersect in a way that satisfactorily reminds us of the tension we felt when Ellen Ripley and Newt found themselves stranded on that platform with no ship waiting to pick them up.

Skyscraper is a solid movie that just falls short of standing alongside others like it, but it does tweak a few things to keep the story interesting. As a physical presence, Dwayne Johnson is more than capable of convincing us of his ability to defy the odds and run through a burning building with debris flying all around him. There are a few stunts along The Pearl's exterior that are spectacular. When it's all over, though, there is no staying power. This is a good distraction while it plays. There's plenty to admire, and there's plenty to dismiss, but when it's all over the movie fades like a puff of smoke. Is Die Hard a Christmas movie? I say no, but the fact that people discuss it every year speaks to that movie's impact on audiences. It was groundbreaking for its time, whereas Skyscraper is content to entertain and make money so its producers can make more like it, even if the movie itself fades into the distant past.

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