Lingering Thoughts - A Comparison Part I


[An earlier version of this PT was originally posted on April, 2012 on JoBlo's "DVD, Blu-Ray & Home Theater Discussion" forum.]

Since there is no 'Past Tense' this week I decided on something different; taking a pause. And yeah, I had to break this into two part since I'm limited to ten images pers post.

This was something I wanted to do for awhile, but not as a one time entry. Had it for years - then recently found my second comparison, that will be a future write up. Hint - it involves a mummy.

So what is this?

Back in January of 2007, I bought the two disc special edition of "The Towering Inferno" (1974) from Circuit City for ten bucks. A good deal when you count that the release came with a slipcover, a replica of the press book, lobby cards and a DVD booklet. *nods*

Up until then I hadn't really seen the movie since I was a little kid (I remember it airing on NBC as a two part event at the time) and hadn't bothered watching it again since '07. I was impressed, the interior design of 'The Glass Tower' was very swift. Effort was made to make it unique, not generic. I would like to live there, minus the whole fire and shoddy construction things.

Sure. The plot is about the gala opening of the world's tallest skyscraper, 'The Glass Tower'. The contractor came way under budget (pocketing the dough) by cutting a lot of corner (crappy and flammable materials) - a fire starts from faulty wiring, plus the sprinklers aren't working. We follow the efforts of the trapped party goers (on the top floor) and firemen trying to overcome the blaze.

Things go from bad to worse to suicidal.

The movie is 164 minutes long. Usually Irwin Allen features are pretty mindless. This had stronger characters and some brains to it, I was surprised. It's still a bit cheesy, but not like "Poseidon"; higher quality dialog.

Okay. So?

I was watching this and the opening credits catch my attention. WTF?

I've seen this before. No, not like that. I've seen this in a different movie, a Steven Spielberg classic - "Jurassic Park" (1993). I wonder if Spielberg was influenced by Allen; it is a disaster flick after all - dinosaurs run amok. Or perhaps it's an homage?

By the way, the score for both blockbusters were composed by the same man, John Williams.

Here we go...

Observations


Jurassic Park - A lone helicopter flies above the sea.


The Towering Inferno - A lone helicopter flies above the sea.


Jurassic Park - The InGen transport carries scientists Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler, Ian Malcolm; lawyer Donald Gennaro and park owner John Hammond.


The Towering Inferno - The Duncan Enterprise transport carries architect Doug Roberts.