Reign of Fire [Blu-ray] [2002] [US Import]

Matthew McConaughey (Actor), Christian Bale (Actor), Rob Bowman (Director) Rated: Suitable for 12 years and over Format: Blu-ray
IMDb6.2/10.0
Additional Blu-ray options Edition Discs
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£13.90 £12.63
Blu-ray
6 Aug. 2007 		—
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£21.18
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Reign Of Fire — £9.99
Format Widescreen, Colour
Contributor Christian Bale, David Kennedy, Scott Moutter, Ned Dennehy, Gregg Chabot, Rob Bowman, Gerard Butler, Kevin Peterka, Rory Keenan, Doug Cockle, Matthew McConaughey, Terence Maynard, Matt Greenberg, Randall Carlton, Izabella Scorupco, Alexander Siddig See more
Language English
UPC 786936732672
Global Trade Identification Number 00786936732672

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  • Note: Blu-ray discs are in a high definition format and need to be played on a Blu-ray player.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
2,356 global ratings

Top reviews from United Kingdom

Redtailmark
5.0 out of 5 stars Great movie!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 July 2024
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I’m mad about dragons and this movie shows them to great effect. Great performances by Bale, McConaughy and Butler in their early years. Story line is good but not outstanding. All in all a great movie and very entertaining. A must for any dragon lover.
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Irish Gal
5.0 out of 5 stars Good clean fun...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 November 2007
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I have a copy of this DVD and have watched it more than a few times. I just get such a kick out of it. The special effects are marvellous. Trying to breath life into a fake dragon is no easy task, but the filmmakers have done a great job. Christian Slater is intense as always but Gerry Butler's sidekick/best friend offers a bit of balance and humour in their relationship. Then along comes Matthew M., bald headed, tattoed, and fairly chompin' on a stogey. Wayyyy over the top in the acting department, but it kinda works after you get used to him. He has an intensity that matches Slater's. The romantic female presence is refreshingly tough and smart even while she's trembling realistically. Who wouldn't with a fire-breathing dragon ready to roast you at any second?

Overall, it's an enjoyable urban-fantasy romp. I'm sure some folks will pick apart and stretch the plot holes, but when I like a film I don't care about those glitches. Oh, and there's lots of great behind-the-scenes extras for those who like that stuff, which I do.
5 people found this helpful
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Spike Owen
4.0 out of 5 stars I lead....You follow.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 June 2011
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Reign of Fire is directed by Rob Bowman and collectively written by Gregg Chabot, Kevin Peterka and Matt Greenberg. It stars Christian Bale, Matthew McConaughey, Izabella Scorupco and Gerard Butler. Cinematography is by Adrian Biddle. Story is set in Apocalyptic England 2020, and fire breathing dragons rule the skies as mankind threatens to become extinct. But in the North a small community of humans, led by Quinn (Bale), do their best to survive. Into their lives comes Dragon Slayer, Denton Van Zan (McConaughey) and his small band of American soldiers, it upsets the equilibrium of the community, but if they can pull together? Then maybe there is hope for mankind to once again thrive.....

It's one of those films that has a reputation, or internet rating, that's difficult to pin down as to how true to form they are. Reign of Fire without a doubt has a premise that's actually better than the film ultimately is. There is scope there for a big budgeted sequel/prequel or certainly for another big summer popcorn blockbuster where dragons rule the Earth. Bowman's film, I believe, was let down badly by the publicity junket that accompanied it. The trailers promised untold delights of dragons fighting mankind, dueling with helicopters and laying siege to man at his most vulnerable. The posters suggested a sky lit up by fire as London comes under attack by a number of winged beasties, the artwork stunning in its presentation. Sadly, as those who have seen the film can attest, neither promise is met, thus expectation levels were never going to be met. So is the low internet rating, and indifferent critical opinions, calling it on its own terms?

Entering with a low expectation does help one to enjoy the film more on a first viewing, definitely, but a repeat viewing also improves the film no end on account of just enjoying the look, feel and characterisations at work. Yes we are still hungry for more dragon attacks, in fact just one sequence of an army of dragons attacking would have been nice, but this is still a gritty little fantasy working well within its budgetary restrictions. The lead players are good value, Bale is grizzled and buffed, putting some quality emotional pathos into Quinn in the process, while McConaughey is on full tilt overdrive excess as the battle hardened Van Zan. You can call it ham or cheese if you like, but McConaughey is having a good time, and the film, and its delicious premise, calls for such a fun and blunderbuss character. While Scorupco and Butler hold their respective ends up well enough. There's a lack of depth in the community characters, so a problem there as it renders the film practically a three pronged piece, while as bizarre as it may sound, the dragons too have no background for us to be involved with as they go about their search for human food.

What action is here, and there's enough to appease the average thrill seeker, is well put together by Bowman (X-Files film and series). Again it helps to realise the budget afforded the film severely restricts the options, but he does well in the singular dragon/man confrontations, with a great finale between our heroes and old daddy dragon well worth the price of a rental. While one extended sequence involving "Ark Angel" soldiers freefalling from the sky is an adrenalin fuelled crowd pleaser. The look, too, is good value, where Adrian Biddle washes out the colours from the photography to create the classic apocalyptic look; where this of course then benefits the shots of the dragon's fire breath, scorching the screen to dazzle the eyes. Clearly it could have been better, but it still comes out far better than many other bigger budgeted action/fantasy movies. Set expectation level at medium, or give the film another chance, and you may find it gets in and does a good job of entertaining you for just over an hour and half. 7/10
9 people found this helpful
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Paul D
5.0 out of 5 stars Dvd Reign of Fire
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 July 2023
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Excellent Dvd Thank you
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Fun !
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 January 2021
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I really enjoyed re watching the film 15 years since the last time I have seen it, it has aged well and played through a decent 5.1 set up the sound was fantastic. Good Fun!
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Warks2010
5.0 out of 5 stars The most under-rated film, its 5 star in my book.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 May 2014
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I took a chance on this film on Netflix one night, wasn't sure if it was going to be any good, but by the end of the film I was taken away with its originality, well constructed story line and overall performances from all the actors. It wasn't quite the typical English film you see on Cinema screens. Christian Bale is brilliant in it and it's well worth a watch if you are interested in mythical creatures and post-apocalyptic films.
2 people found this helpful
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KingWeir
5.0 out of 5 stars Dragons film, awesome!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 August 2015
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Plus - DRAGONS
Minus - Apparently Dragons burn things to eat Ash.
Plus - Supposedly set in England
Minus - Never once see Dragons eatin Ash, only burn things on swooping in and biting humans.
Plus - Interesting story, trying to survive in a world with Dragons
Minus - Locations are soo limited, it could actually be anywhere
Plus - Christian Bale's acting
Minus - Matthew McConaughey's acting
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Ryan
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best movies of the 2000s
Reviewed in the United States on 18 July 2024
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This movie is one if my favorite dragon / apocalyptic movies with some great actors. Visual affects from this movie still hold up today which us saying something.

Not much to say but give this movie a shot. I got it on sale for $6.99 which is a steal.
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El producto me pareció excelente, es como aparece en la publicación 😃
5.0 out of 5 stars Excelente película, un clásico
Reviewed in Mexico on 1 June 2024
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La película me encantó, lo mejor es que está doblada en español latino.
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Duclos didier
5.0 out of 5 stars L'année des dragons !
Reviewed in France on 28 December 2022
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J'ai bien aimé ce film en DVD , le revoir en blu-ray, c'est autre chose ! 😁
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Barry Zunneberg
5.0 out of 5 stars Value for money
Reviewed in Australia on 21 September 2022
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Great film and actor lm very happy with the seller and product
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N. N. Light
5.0 out of 5 stars Who Reigns Supreme? A gritty fantasy gem!
Reviewed in Canada on 3 April 2017
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Dragons have wiped out most of the world and those who are left do what it takes to survive. When a hot-shot dragon-slayer arrives and tries to take over, every person must decide to either stay safe inside or venture out and battle the dragons face-to-face. Bale and McConaughy are brilliant as rivals but the stars of the show are of course, the dragons. Gritty, high-drama fantasy and highly recommend!

My Rating: 5+ stars
2 people found this helpful
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