Critic Reviews

• Jason Anderson, Toronto Star

  An action-packed look at the men who do their best to keep Detroit from going up in flames.

• J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader

  These stories are moving, but what really distinguishes the film is the sense of an entire city giving in to self-immolation.

• Stephanie Merry, Washington Post

  An emotional character study of a group of heroic, yet very human, individuals.

• Stephen Holden, New York Times

  The film makes you thankful for members of this macho breed, who relish risking their lives to save others.

• Andrew Schenker, Village Voice

  Burn captures the danger (and, yes, excitement) of putting out blazes, as well as the futility of dousing flames in a city rife with arson-and the struggles to maintain adequate funding in a wrecked economy that hits the public sector hardest.

• Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times

  Vividly captures a year in the life of eastside Detroit's Engine Company 50.

• Chris Knight, National Post

  Burn, from directors Tom Putnam and Brenna Sanchez, is a straight-up documentary about a year in the life of the Detroit Fire Department. And what a year.

• Cynthia Fuchs, PopPolitics.com

  As powerful as Burn's images can be, the Detroit firefighters tell their own stories about what's important to them, their neighborhood connections, their family legacies, their pride in their fellows and in their community.

• Brian Tallerico, HollywoodChicago.com

  Directors Tom Putnam and Brenna Sanchez structure Burn in a brilliant way, allowing viewers not just access to life behind the fire hose but to make personal connections with these men who act against the human instinct to run away from the flames.

• Jeff Meyers, Metro Times (Detroit, MI)

  ... the dynamic on-the-fly scenes of danger and chummy stationhouse camaraderie are slowly peeled away to reveal a fascinating and multigenerational portrait of loss, resiliency, frustration and regret.

• Louis Proyect, rec.arts.movies.reviews

  If Black America is an internal colony, then Detroit is its epicenter. Hence, the more than coincidental ties between this powerful documentary and Pontecorvo's masterpiece.

• Doris Toumarkine, Film Journal International

  Burn is not just a celebration of these wonderful, involving fighters of fires and so much more that threatens survival. It is also a tribute to the decent working class and firefighters everywhere who impact so many lives.

• Glenn Heath Jr., Slant Magazine

  The endless scenes of burning buildings and macho posturing merely provide an action-driven context for the filmmakers to deal with more personal topics like loneliness and resiliency.

• Harvey S. Karten, Compuserve

  Who needs the fake fires and explosions of the"Terminator" series when you can see the real thing in this doc?

Read all 14 critic reviews