Horror classic remake with Zac Efron ‘so bad it should never have been made’ on Film4

The 2022 Stephen King remake starring Zac Efron has divided fans with scathing reviews calling it a ‘horrible rendition’ as it airs on Film4 tonight

A beloved film adaptation of a Stephen King novel has received a modern makeover – but devotees are far from impressed, and it’s screening on Film4 this evening.

The 2022 version of Firestarter draws from the same Stephen King source material as the 1984 classic featuring Drew Barrymore. Yet this contemporary reimagining has sparked rather polarised responses.

The updated storyline centres on young Charlie McGee (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), who possesses formidable pyrokinetic abilities, as she and her parents, Andy (Zac Efron) and Vicky (Sydney Lemmon), evade a sinister government organisation known as “The Shop”, which seeks to exploit her powers for warfare.

Charlie’s abilities, unleashed by fury and anguish, grow increasingly unmanageable as she matures, culminating in an episode that reveals their whereabouts to the agency’s ruthless operative, Rainbird (Michael Greyeyes), prompting a frantic getaway whilst Charlie masters her perilous talent.

The 1984 original proved enormously popular with audiences, but numerous critics have been swift to highlight that the remake fails to match its predecessor.

One viewer said on Rotten Tomatoes: “While Zac Efron turns in a committed, grounded performance and John Carpenter’s synth-heavy soundtrack is undeniably awesome, Firestarter ultimately falls flat as a lackluster and toothless remake. It lacks the cinematic scale or tension required to make the story feel urgent, instead settling for the visual polish and pacing of a generic TV movie. It’s a functional adaptation at best.”, reports the Mirror.

One viewer echoed similar sentiments, saying: “The opening sequence alone is enough to tell you the production is terrible. This is a lousy remake of a classic King movie and another disservice to the wonderful novel.”

A third added: “This movie is so bad. I couldn’t even watch the whole thing. Bad acting! Never should of been remade,” while another said: “An absolute miss. Over as soon as it started, it made me wonder why even remake it if they’re just gonna rush through it.

“Did they even read the book. There was so much that they missed, made up and just did on the fly in this horrible rendition of Firestarter. This was a horrible movie from start to finish. and then it had Zac in it which told me from jump this movie was trash,” another viewer criticised.

However, some fans found enjoyment in the film, with one pointing out: “Ok first things first. This is NOT a horror movie. Its an super power action fantasy movie. It wasnt bad at all. But it was slow and uninteresting at points.

“It also was very repetitive at times. I do enjoy the characters of the old man that wanted to help them out though. Over all carrie is clearly the superior girl with psychic powers movie.”

Another viewer defended the film, saying: “I have no idea why this movie received such bad reviews. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I especially liked that Charlie was more dangerous and the changes with Rainbird. It just goes to show that you can’t trust other people’s opinions. Definitely not the critics here. It’s a good fun popcorn movie.”

Firestarter airs on Saturday 17 January on Film4 at 12.20am.