Review: Playing With Fire

Release date: November 8, 2019
Running time: 96 minutes
Starring: Judy Greer, Keegan-Michael Key, John Cena

In Playing With Fire, four daredevil "smoke jumpers" (firemen who use a helicopter to jump right into a dangerous fire) have to put out a new kind of disaster when they are forced to take care of three children in their isolated fire station.  The kids have a blast playing with dangerous equipment and disrupting these men's lives, while the smoke jumpers (Cena, Key, Leguizamo, and Mane) must adapt quickly if they are going to survive this latest challenge.

The premise of this movie is ridiculous, but luckily the cast makes this film a fun little adventure.  Cena is very entertaining as the gruff, straight edge commander of the smoke jumpers, who only wants to pursue his career and has no interest in insubordinate children.  The rest of his crew (Key, Leguizamo, and Mane) provide lots of additional comic relief as they relate to and run away from their new rambunctious roommates.  Greer provides a love interest and a much needed strong female character.  And the kids do a great job in their natural roles, as troublemaking kids.  

The movie puts the smoke jumpers in a number of ridiculous situations that are highly dangerous, but also highly entertaining for a kids movie.  These kids destroy LOTS of equipment and cause lots of trouble, and it is up to the smoke jumpers to fix their messes and keep them in line.  Sure, the film is pretty far-fetched and the situation is silly, but it is also enjoyable to see.  And although there isn't a lot of fire after the first two scenes, that is probably better as my children enjoyed the silly antics more than the serious fire scenes.  And speaking of children, my kids couldn't stop raving about the movie after we left, which is a pretty good indicator for a children's movie. 

Playing With Fire takes a very funny cast, ridiculous situations, and lots of funny moments and tells a silly but heartwarming story that the whole family will love!

Watch it (with your kids)