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Towering Inferno (The) (1974)
At the opening party of a collosal, but poorly constructed, office building, a massive fire breaks out that threatens to destroy the tower and everyone in it.Director: John Guillermin, Irwin Allen
Year of Copyright: 1974
Year of Production: 1974
OVERALL: Draw-
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Extras:DISC ONE
* The Film
Audio commentary by Film Historian F.X. Feeney (2006)
Scene specific 2006 audio commentary by special effects director Mike Venzina (Play All - 12:44):
- Explosion on 81 (0:42)
- Fire Chief Arrives on 81 (0:54)
- "I Used to Run the 100 in 10 Flat" (3:00)
- Explosion in Stairwell (1:05)
- Roger Tries to Escape (0:49)
- Elevator Explosion (1:29)
- Breeches Buoy (1:13)
- Water Explosion (3:33)
Scene specific 2006 audio commentary by Stunt Coordinator Branko Racki (Play All - 21:33):
- Will Giddings Catches Fire (1:36)
- Battling Fire (1:24)
- Man on Fire (0:50)
- "I Used to Run the 100 in 10 Flat" (3:16)
- Fallen Stairwell (3:11)
- Scenic Elevator Brought to Safety (2:43)
- Fight Over Breeches Buoy (1:39)
- Prepping the Water Tanks (2:36)
- Water Tank Explosion (4:19)
DISC TWO
"AMC Backstory: The Towering Inferno" 2002 TV episode (22:08)
2006 featurettes:
- "Inside the Tower: We Remember" (8:16)
- "Innovating Tower: The SPFX of an Inferno" (6:55)
- "The Art of Towering" (5:18)
- "Irwin Allen: The Great Producer" (6:26)
- "Directing the Inferno" (4:29)
- "Putting Out Fire" (4:59)
- "Running on Fire" (5:52)
- "Still the World's Tallest Building" (8:24)
- "The Writer: Stirling Silliphant" (9:17)
Vintage Promotional Material:
- NATO Presentation Reel (11:07)
- Original 1974 Featurette #1 (8:16)
- Original 1974 Featurette #2 (7:21)
- Irwin Allen 1977 Interview (Play All - 12:26):
-- What was Irwin's first contact with this project? (1:52)
-- How did Irwin design and put together the project? (1:27)
-- What was the next step? (1:50)
-- What are some of the problems working with fire? (0:44)
-- Was there any danger to the actors? (0:26)
-- What was the hardest thing to film? (1:03)
-- What was the biggest draw? (2:00)
-- What was the reward for doing this? (1:41)
-- How did Irwin start off a project? (1:23)
- Teaser Trailer (1:35)
- Theatrical Trailer (2:13)
- "The Poseidon Adventure" Trailer (3:17)
Extended and Deleted Scenes (Play All - 44:40):
- Alternate Opening Sequence (0:56)
- Harlee Meets Up with Lisolette and the Kids (1:38)
- Air Ducts (0:44)
- Close Up of Harry on the Phone (1:10)
- Extended Scene with Doug and Susan (2:05)
- The Jeweler Delivers the Golden Scissors as Dan Bigelow Argues with His Staff (2:46)
- James and Dan Discuss the Party (1:09)
- Harlee and Lisolette (0:52)
- James and Susan Discuss San Francisco (2:26)
- The Mayor Addresses the Crowd (1:40)
- James Discusses the Elevators with the Mayor and Senator Gary Parker (1:49)
- James and Senator Parker in the Elevator (1:03)
- The Party's Entertainer (1:03)
- Firemen (0:59)
- Susan and Patty Discuss Their Significant Others (1:52)
- The Electrical System (0:50)
- Emergency Vehicles on the Scene (1:12)
- Waiting for the Elevator (0:50)
- Four Alarm Fire (2:55)
- Trapped in Her Room (1:09)
- Fire (1:18)
- The Stairwell (1:03)
- Lisolette in the Stairwell (1:03)
- In the Promenade (1:49)
- Still Waiting for the Elevator (0:40)
- Attempting to Revive the Unconscious Man (1:51)
- Shadow-Puppets on the Wall (1:09)
- Roger Returns to the Promenade (1:30)
- Window Warning (0:58)
- Adjusting the Elevator Controls (1:00)
- Connecting the Cable (1:08)
- Rescue Buoy (1:04)
- Hosing Down Flames (1:01)
American Cinematographer Articles:
- "The Towering Inferno and How it Was Filmed" by Charles Loring (23 text pages)
- "Photographing the Dramatic Sequences for The Towering Inferno" by Bob Fisher (26 text pages)
- "Action Unit Lives Up to is Name While Shooting The Towering Inferno" by David Hammond (34 text pages)
Galleries:
- Shot Compositions (28 images)
- Publicity Material (41 images)
- Behind the Scenes (71 images)
- Conceptual Sketches (58 images)
- Costumes (22 images)
Storyboard Comparisons:
- Fallen Stairwell (2:35)
- Helicopter Crash (1:11)
- Elevator Shaft (2:20)
- Scenic Elevator (1:59)
- Buoy Chair (1:54)
- Water Tank Explosion (3:08) -
Subtitles:English, Spanish
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Aspect Ratio:2.35:1
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Picture Format:Anamorphic
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TV System:NTSC
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Soundtrack(s):English Dolby Digital 4.0
English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono -
Case type:Keep Case
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Notes:includes:
- A 6-page liner notes leaflet with an essay and chapter listing.
- A 20-page reproduction of the theatrical programme.
- 8 reproduction lobby cards in a "Cinema Classics Collection: 20th Century Fox Lobby Cards" cream envelope.
- An embossed card outer slipcase. -
Have you spotted a mistake in these specifications? If so, let us know via our forums. -
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Extras:Cast and Crew Biographies
Theatrical Trailer (2:10) -
Subtitles:English, Spanish
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Aspect Ratio:2.35:1
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Picture Format:Non-Anamorphic
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TV System:NTSC
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Soundtrack(s):English Dolby Digital 5.1
English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround -
Case type:Keep Case
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Have you spotted a mistake in these specifications? If so, let us know via our forums. -
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Extras:Theatrical Trailer (2:12)
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Subtitles:Arabic, Dutch, English, English HoH, French, Italian and Italian HoH
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Aspect Ratio:2.35:1
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Picture Format:Anamorphic
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TV System:PAL
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Soundtrack(s):English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
French Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Italian Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround -
Case type:Keep Case
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Have you spotted a mistake in these specifications? If so, let us know via our forums. -
Buy this disc from
Amazon France
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Extras:Theatrical Trailer (2:12)
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Subtitles:Croatian, Czech, English, English HoH, German, German HoH, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Portuguese, Slovanian and Spanish
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Aspect Ratio:2.35:1
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Picture Format:Anamorphic
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TV System:PAL
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Soundtrack(s):English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
German Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround -
Case type:Keep Case
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Have you spotted a mistake in these specifications? If so, let us know via our forums. -
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Extras:Theatrical Trailer (2:12)
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Subtitles:Arabic, Dutch, English, English HoH, French, Italian and Italian HoH
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Aspect Ratio:2.35:1
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Picture Format:Anamorphic
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TV System:PAL
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Soundtrack(s):English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
French Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Italian Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround -
Case type:Keep Case
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Have you spotted a mistake in these specifications? If so, let us know via our forums. -
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Extras:Theatrical Trailer (2:12)
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Subtitles:Croatian, Czech, English, English HoH, German, German HoH, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Portuguese, Slovanian and Spanish
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Aspect Ratio:2.35:1
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Picture Format:Anamorphic
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TV System:PAL
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Soundtrack(s):English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
German Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround -
Case type:Keep Case
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Have you spotted a mistake in these specifications? If so, let us know via our forums. -
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Extras:Theatrical Trailer (2:12)
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Subtitles:Arabic, Bulgarian, English, English HoH and Romanian
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Aspect Ratio:2.35:1
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Picture Format:Anamorphic
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TV System:PAL
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Soundtrack(s):English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
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Case type:Snapper Case
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Notes:R2/4 encoded.
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Have you spotted a mistake in these specifications? If so, let us know via our forums. -
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Extras:Theatrical Trailer (2:12)
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Subtitles:Arabic, Bulgarian, English, English HoH and Romanian
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Aspect Ratio:2.35:1
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Picture Format:Anamorphic
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TV System:PAL
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Soundtrack(s):English Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
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Case type:Keep Case
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Have you spotted a mistake in these specifications? If so, let us know via our forums. -
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OVERALL: Draw
The US Special Edition for the anamorphic transfer, extensive extras and original 4.0 audio track.
The original US release has a 5.1 audio track but the transfer is non-anamorphic.
Note also that, visitor Julien Comelli reports that all French audio tracks are from a 2003 re-dub rather than the 'original' French audio track. He contacted Warner Bros who confirmed this.
Please see the image-comparison from below: -
CUTS:
- R1 Special Edition America- Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment - No cuts (164:41 NTSC)
- R1 THX Certified America- Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment - No cuts (164:40 NTSC)
- R2 France- Warner Home Video - No cuts (158:12 PAL).
- R2 Germany- Warner Home Video - No cuts (158:12 PAL).
- R2 Holland- Warner Home Video - No cuts (158:12 PAL).
- R2 Spain- Warner Home Video - No cuts (158:12 PAL).
- R2 United Kingdom- Warner Home Video - No cuts (158:12 PAL).
- R4 Australia- Warner Home Video - No cuts (158:12 PAL).
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Comparison added by David on 22/11/01
Comparison last updated by Rick_Curzon on 01/09/21UPDATE LOG:
22/11/01: Initial entry.
Please ensure you read our disclaimer.
29/04/11: Added note re French audio track.
04/04/19: Added Germany, updated US x2, PAL runtimes.
01/09/21: Dates.
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